Now That's What I Call Family
by Imagination.To.Paper
Summary: A collection of one-shots based on your suggestions! Let me know what you would like to see written and I will do my best to accommodate!
1. Chapter 1

I know I have other stories that I am working on, but I am stuck on where to go with them.

So I thought I could create another story featuring one-shots of suggestions form you guys and possibly some of the ideas I could use in my stories.

So please send me suggestions you would like to see written and I will do my best to accommodate. However, I will not write Brallie. Sorry.

I will update this story with one-shots and I will continue to update my other stories when the right idea comes to me.


	2. Sneaking Out

**_Thanks to FreakyGreenEyes123 for the suggestion for this!_**

**_This is about Mariana trying to sneak out to see Zac, but Stef catches her. _**

_Yeah I know but you'll be great! -Mariana_

Mariana smiled as her text to Zac sent. She was so excited to finally have a boyfriend.

"Hey. You're on dishes, remember." Callie said as she poked her head into the room. Mariana smiled and nodded her head. She had finally gotten used to having a sister and now that Callie was here, she couldn't imagine her life without her.

"Ok. I'll be right there." She replied turning her attention back to her phone.

"Is that Zac?" Callie asked, walking further into the room and sitting on her own bed. It had been a long time since Callie was able to just sit and chat about normal teenage girl things, like boys.

Mariana blushed and smiled. "Yeah"

"So you two are like a thing now, right?" The older girl asked and the younger one stood up.

"Yeah. I guess." She answered before slipping her phone into her pocket. "I'm gonna do the dishes before someone narks" She said squinting her eyes at her older sister.

"Woah! Don't look at me! I'm the one that came in here to remind you, remember?" She said with a fake hurt look. "I would never rat out my own sister!"

Mariana smiled at Callie's comment. She knew it was difficult for the older teen to refer to her and her family as her own family and hearing her being called her sister made Mariana giddy with happiness.

"Yeah. Us girls gotta stick together around here." She replied as her phone buzzed in her pocket. She smiled once more and took the phone out of her pocket before starting towards the stairs.

* * *

"I said no, Jesus. Not please drop it." Lena said in a stern voice.

"But mom I won't be out late I promise!"

"Hey! Didn't mama say to drop it?" Stef interjected as she flipped through some files from work.

"But..." Jesus began before he got a look from both of his mothers. "This blows" he muttered under his breath before turning to leave the room.

"Hey. You wanna be grounded?" Stef asked. All of the kids knew she hated mumbling.

"No." The boy said, handing his head.

"Didn't think so." She responded.

"Sorry, mama" He said quickly before darting up the stairs.

Lena exhaled deeply and looked over at her wife who was shaking her head. "That kid" She said with a slight chuckle.

"How was your day, love?" Lena asked as she heard another set of footprints on the stairs.

"Oh just great." Stef replied sarcastically, motioning to all of the paperwork she still had left to do. Stef let out a little chuckle and then smiled as she saw her daughter walking into the room, her nose in her phone. "Well look who decided to grace us with her presence." She said with a smirk.

"I was wondering when you were gonna get pestered by your siblings to do the dishes." Lena said with a small smile.

Mariana looked up from her phone and stuck out her tongue at her mothers in a playful manner and set her phone down on the counter next to the sink.

"Oh! She can live without her phone. It's a miracle" Stef said with a dramatic gasp. Mariana rolled her eyes and laughed.

"Oh my gosh mom, chill. Sorry I have a lot of friends." She said with a chuckle as she made her way to the dishes.

"So sorry, Miss Popular" Stef replied.

"Uhhh why are there so many dishes?" Mariana groaned as she looked at the overflowing pile in the sink.

"Well next time you could eat out of your hands if you wanna save a dish." Stef replied with a smirk, earning a look from her wife.

"Mari, no complaining please." Lena said with a small smile.

Mariana sighed and turned the water on before rolling up her sleeves and reaching for the first plate.

Stef turned back to her wife and smiled. "And how was your day?" She asked, trying to continue the conversation from earlier.

"Well I didn't have to give anyone a detention, so I'd say it was a pretty great day." She said wish a smile.

Suddenly, the sound of buzzing filled the room and Mariana looked over at her phone. Ignoring the text, the moms continued their conversation. Mariana, on the other hand, strained her neck towards the phone to see if she could read the text that she was almost certain was from Zac.

Sighing when she couldn't get to her phone, she quickly took her hands out of the water, wiped them off on her pants and grabbed her phone. She flipped her phone open and just as she was about to open the text, the phone slipped out of her hands and fell into the sink. "No!" She yelled as she quickly reached into the sink to pull out the phone.

"What happened?" Lena asked quickly, concern in her voice. She got up and made her way over to her daughter.

"My phone! I accidentally dropped it in the sink!" She said, tears beginning to form.

"Put it in some rice!" Stef said from across the room before getting up and making her way to the pantry. She fumbled around the food until she found the rice and pulled it out.

"Rice?" Mariana looked at Stef like she was crazy.

"Yeah. It will soak up the water from your phone." She answered as her daughter gave her another look. "Just trust me." She said before reaching her hand out. "Let me put it in while you finish the dishes." Mariana groaned before handing her phone off. "You didn't think you were gonna get out of the dishes that easy, did you?" Stef asked with a smirk.

"Yeah. Like I purposely dropped my phone in the sink so I could get out of doing the dishes." Mariana said sarcastically.

"Mooooooom!" Jesus yelled from upstairs, causing all three to stop talking.

"Dishes." Lena said to her daughter, pointing at the sink before turning towards her wife. "You got this? I'm gonna check on your kids." She said planting a quick kiss on her wife's cheek.

"Oh I see. When they're doing something wrong they're my kids." Stef replied.

"Yup." Lena said with a smile before making her way towards the stairs.

"Real nice, hun." Stef called after her as she began to take apart Mariana's phone to put it into the rice. "Ok, Miss Thing. This needs to sit in here for a half hour or so. You think you can handle being without your phone for that long?"

"Gosh mom! You make it sound like all I can do is think about my phone. I'm not that shallow!" She exclaimed with a slight hint of hurt in her voice.

"I'm sorry baby" Stef said as she walked over to her daughter and kissed her on the head. "I'll keep it on the counter and we'll check it in a bit, ok?"

Mariana nodded and wiped her eye where a tear was threatening to fall.

"Mari, baby I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." Stef said as she realized she may have teased her daughter too much on the subject.

"It's fine." She said before going back to the dishes.

Stef bit her bottom lip for a second before rolling up her own sleeves and reaching into the sink next to her daughter. "It'll be quicker with both of us." She said with a smile and was relieved when she got a smile back.

* * *

20 minutes later, Mariana and Stef were putting the last of the dishes away and Lena was making her way back downstairs.

"We still have 5 kids?" Stef asked as Lena sat down at the table.

"For now." She said with a slight chuckle.

"Why don't you go shower, Miss Thing. And then homework." Stef said as she playfully swatted at her daughter's behind.

"Uhhh mom." She groaned but walked to the stairs.

Stef smiled and turned to her wife. "So. What did my children do wrong?" She emphasized the word 'my'.

"Jesus has informed me that, and I quote, 'It's totally not fair that I have to share a room. I can't do all of the things I need to do.'" She said raising an eyebrow.

"What does he need to..." Stef started to ask before Lena answered with "I don't even want to know."

Both moms laughed slightly and Stef looked around before looking back at her wife. "Do you see that?" She asked.

"What?" Lena asked, clearly not getting what Stef was hinting at.

"I see an empty room." Stef said with a smile.

Lena finally caught on. "Oh I like that." Lena said with a smile as she reached over and looped her fingers through the belt loops of Stef's jeans and pulled her closer. She planted a firm kiss on her wife's lips, though the pleasure was short lived when she heard two sets of footsteps on the stairs.

"Mom!"

Stef groaned. and Lena sighed. "Your kids are here" she said as she kissed her wife once more and pulled away.

"Ok I don't know what is going on with you, but I don't want to hear it." Stef said as she turned to her two youngest sons. "Jesus, did you do your homework?" She asked, looking at him straight in the eyes.

"Well..." He began before she cut him off. "Dining room table. Now." She said as she pointed. "Any you, my little man." She said, slinging her arm around his shoulders. "Did you finish your homework?" She asked, though she was pretty sure she knew the answer.

"Yes." He said.

"Ok, sweetie. Why don't you spend some alone time in your room while Jesus does his homework down here. And then with Mariana is out of the shower you can take one. Then you won't have to take one tomorrow." She said gently.

"Ok." The young boy said and started back up the stairs.

Stef smiled and looked at Lena. "My kids, hu?"

Lena just shook her head and walked to the dining room to see if her son needed any help on homework.

Stef began to gather her paperwork from the table when she spotted the bowl that contained rice and her daughter's phone. She shook her head and walked over to the bowl. She quickly fished out each piece of the phone and began to put the battery back in to see if it would turn on. She really hoped that it would because she knew they couldn't afford to buy her a new phone right now. Stef smiled when she saw the screen light up. She put the phone down so she could put the rice into a bag to be used again if another electronic were to get wet.

Before she was able to put the rice away, she heard the phone buzz several times. Stef wasn't one to snoop, but she glanced over at her daughter's phone and saw that the most recent text was from Zac. She smiled to herself. She and Lena had their suspicions that she and Zac were dating, but they didn't want to push anything. However, when another text lit up the screen, Stef crinkled her forehead as she read the message.

_Just sneak out. Tell them you're sick or something. It's fine. Just this once. -Zac_

Stef was surprised. She hadn't pegged Zac as the type to sneak around. Before she could say anything, she heard her daughter's voice.

"Mom! Is my phone working?" She asked with evident concern.

Stef shut the phone and held it out to her. "Good as new." She said with a smile. "But next time, let's not bring the phone near the sink, yes?" She asked while raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah I know." She said before taking the phone out of her mother's hands. "Thanks, mom." She said before kissing her mother on the cheek and running back upstairs.

Stef stood in the kitchen for a moment, thinking to herself. She wondered what her daughter would do with that text.

"Whatcha thinking about, babe?" Lena asked as she pulled Stef out of her thoughts.

"I put Mari's phone back together to make sure it worked, and when I did, a bunch of texts popped up."

"Ok..." Lena said, obviously waiting for the story to continue.

"So as I was checking it, I saw that one was from Zac." She continued.

"Aww I knew they had a thing going on." Lena said with a smile, thinking that was the end of her wife's story.

"Yeah but it's what he texted that confuses me." She continued and Lena stopped to look at Stef. "He told her to sneak out tonight to see him."

This time, Lena raised her eyebrow.

"So we'll see just what our little Miss Thing does with that."

* * *

As soon as she got to her room, Mariana opened her phone and looked at her texts. When she got to the one from Zac telling her to sneak out, she froze. She hadn't ever thought of sneaking out before, she knew her moms checked up on her before they went to bed, and it would be extremely difficult to leave without getting caught with so many people in the house. She looked down at her phone when it buzzed again.

_Please? I'll just meet you outside a little ways down from your house. I want to talk to you in person about __something._ -_Zac_

Mariana felt the sides of her lips tug to form a smile. Just then, Callie walked into her room and Mariana's brain began to turn.

"Hey, Callie." Mariana said in the sweetest voice she could find.

Callie stopped what she was doing and looked at her sister with a confused look. "What do you want?" She asked, not beating around the bush.

"Ok. So Zac said he needs to talk to me but it's too late for me to go see him, but he said he can meet me outside for like a really short time and I feel like if I don't go he will think I don't like him." She rambled.

"Ok..." Callie said, getting an idea of where this was going, but wanting to hear it from her sister.

"So I was just kinda hoping. I dono maybe you could cover for me? I would only be gone for like 10 minutes." She said, her lip puffing out and her eyes pleading.

"I dono, Mari. We would get in huge trouble if moms found out." Callie said with a questioning tone.

"Please. This is what sisters are supposta do. They're supposta cover for each other and help the other out. Especially when it comes to boys." Mariana pleaded again, batting her eyelashes.

"Ok, ok. You don't have to do that with your eyes" Callie said as she shook her head. "But you had better be only 10 minutes." She said and smiled when Mariana squealed and gave her a hug.

"Thank you thank you thank you, Callie! I owe you!"

"Yeah. You owe me big." Callie responded as Mariana grabbed her phone to text Zac.

_Ok. Callie is gonna cover for me. I'll meet you outside in 10 minutes. -Mari_

"What are you gonna tell moms?" Callie asked as she took out a book to read.

"I'll tell them I finished my homework and I'm not feeling that great and want to go to bed early." She said simply as she touched up her makeup.

"You really think they're gonna buy that?" Callie asked, raising an eyebrow in disbelief.

"Well maybe you could keep them distracted?" Mariana said. Stopping to look Callie in the eyes. "Please. It would mean so much to me. I mean this is the first guy I've ever really liked and I really want him to like me. And I promise it will be only 10 minutes." This time, her request wasn't a fake begging, it was sincere and Callie did want to help her sister.

"Ok fine. But girl you owe me so big." She started to say as Mariana ran over and hugged her.

"I know I know so big. Thank you!" She exclaimed.

"I'll talk with them in their room." Callie said while trying to think of something she could talk to them about that would keep both of them busy for at least 10 minutes.

"Perfect. I'm gonna finish getting ready then get into bed." Mariana said knowing that most likely one of her moms would be coming up to check on them relatively soon.

* * *

As if on cue, 5 minutes later, Stef knocked on the girls' door and walked in. By that time, Mariana had gotten into bed and pulled the covers over her head. Callie turned off the light and was editing pictures on her phone. Once Stef opened the door, Callie got up from her bed and began her part of the plan. She hated lying to the women who took her in when she thought she had no one, but she knew Mariana wouldn't do anything stupid and she felt special to be able to help her sister with something she really wanted.

"Uh mom." Callie whispered, throwing the mom title in there for extra sympathy. "Mariana got a really bad migraine and said she usually just goes to sleep and it goes away. So she said to tell you that she did her homework and is going to bed early. I was gonna come get you but I wanted to finish editing some pictures."

Stef raised an eyebrow. _Sick, hu?_ She thought to herself. She assumed that her younger daughter had roped Callie into helping her,and she decided to play along to see just how far they would take this.

"Aww my poor baby." Stef said as she walked further into the room and towards the girl who had wrapped herself into the comforter of her bed and was facing away from the door. "Mari, baby." Stef said as she sat on the bed next to the girl. "How you feelin?" She asked.

"Mmmm. Migraine. Just wanna sleep." She mustered up the best sick voice she could make and replied without lifting her head.

"Well ok, baby girl. I hope you feel better. I love you and I'll come check on you in a bit, ok?"

Mariana nodded and pulled the covers tighter against her face as her mom bent down to kiss her head.

Stef stood up and walked back to wards Callie who was still by the door. "Did you do your homework, love?" She asked in a whisper. Callie nodded then looked at the door. "Uhh can I talk to you for a second?" She asked shyly.

Stef's face lit up. She nodded and opened the door just wide enough for her and Callie to slip through before gently closing it behind them.

Once they were in the hallway, Stef looked at the teen once more and said, "what did you want to talk about, sweets?"

Callie fidgeted with her hands but continued with the plan she had come up with. "Uhh I was wondering if I could talk to you and Le- erm mama about something."

Stef smiled and nodded again. "Sure, baby. Mama is helping Jesus with some homework, but maybe we can all talk in our room? That way it's private and I can hear your sister in case she needs anything." She said, making sure to watch the teen as she said that last part. Callie's eyes darted from side to side as she mentioned Mariana but she simply nodded.

"Ok, love why don't you go get settled in our room and I'll get mama." Stef said, gently squeezing the girl's shoulder and giving her one more smile.

"Ok." Callie said as she turned to the master bedroom.

* * *

"Yup! Last one!" Jesus exclaimed as he looked happily at Lena.

"Ok. Go on up and get ready for bed. But please be nice to your brother." Lena said.

"I know. I'm sorry." Jesus said quietly, realizing that Jude was probably not used to the whole sibling rivalry thing and was really just trying to feel included.

"Ok, baby. Scoot." Lena said with a smile before the teen grabbed his homework and ran towards the stairs.

"Woah there!" Stef exclaimed as Jesus almost ran into her as she made her way down the stairs.

"Sorry!" He responded quickly and continued up.

Stef smiled to herself and shook her head before continuing down the stairs towards her wife. "What are we gonna do with that kid?" Lena asked.

"I say we send him out to do laps" Stef responded with a straight face.

"There is something like that at school. It's called track." Lena said as she got up and brushed some eraser pieces off of her lap.

"So Callie asked to talk to us about something." Stef explained to Lena.

"Wait, she came to you about this?" Lena questioned, not believing what her wife was saying.

"Yeah. Though I'm not sure if she actually wants to talk about something important or if she wants to distract us from a "sick" Mariana" Stef continued, air-quoating the word sick so Lena could understand that she was sure the girl was faking.

"Ok. Well either way, maybe we can actually get her to talk about how she is feeling." Lena started before stopping and looking at Stef. "But what are we gonna just let Mari sneak out?"

Stef had a sly smile painted on her lips and Lena knew her mind was at work. "Oh great. What are you thinking?" Lena asked, nervous of what the answer could be.

"Let's just say that we can talk with Callie, but I will also be talking with our other daughter tonight." Stef said as she reached her hand out for her wife to take. Lena shook her head, but took the outstretched hand. "Nothing too crazy, right?" She asked timidly.

"No. Promise, babe. Just crazy enough for her to never even think about doing something like this again." She answered as they walked up the stairs.

* * *

Mariana waited until she couldn't hear her mother or sister outside of her door before getting out of bed and opening up her window. She was glad that the house was designed in such a way that part of the roof jutted out as a flat surface right beneath her window. She could easily climb from the roof to the tree and get down. She took a deep breath and began to make her way out the window.

* * *

"Hey bug." Stef said as she and Lena entered their bedroom and saw Callie sitting unusually straight and still on the bed. "You alright?" Stef asked.

Callie nodded her head quickly and tried to push a smile out.

"So mom said you wanted to talk to us about something?" Lena said as she sat next to the girl and put her hand on the teen's back.

Callie looked at both moms and slowly nodded her head but before she could open her mouth to speak, Stef's phone began to vibrate in her pocket.

"Oh hold on." She said quickly as she pulled it out and looked at the call- hiding the fact that she knew it was from her mother- as she had asked her to call her cell in 5 minutes. "It's the station. I'm gonna see if it is an emergency and I will be right back." Stef said giving Lena a look before turning to exit the room.

"Wait!" Callie said suddenly as Stef answered the call and turned around before putting the phone up to her ear saying, "Can you hold a moment, Captain?"

"I'll be right back, love." Stef said before looking at Lena to talk with the girl while she dealt with her soon-to-be grounded daughter.

"You alright, love?" Lena asked as Stef walked out of the room. Callie swallowed deeply but nodded her head. "Uhh yeah. Fine." She said, hoping that Stef wouldn't feel the need to check on Mariana before coming back.

* * *

Mariana put her ringing phone up to her ear. She had dialed Zac's number as soon as she made it to the grass. She wanted to make sure she headed the correct way to meet him, knowing she had a limited amount time with him.

"Hey!" She said excitedly. "Yeah. Callie's covering for me." She said as she made her way past the side of the house. "Ok. Yeah I know where that is. I'll be there in a minute." She said but stopped in her tracks when she saw a figure sitting on the front porch steps. "Oh shit!" She exclaimed. "Uhh hold on" She whispered into the phone and tried to quietly back away.

"Why don't you tell Zac goodbye? And that you probably won't be able to see him for a week." Stef said calmly and Mariana closed her eyes in defeat.

She sighed and spoke once more into the phone. "Hey Zac I gotta go. I'll see ya at school." She said before quickly bidding him bye and closing the phone. She slowly made her way to the steps that Stef were sitting on, head hanging down with guilt.

"Have a seat." Stef said, gesturing to an open spot next to her. Once the teen sat down and put her phone down, Stef continued. "Care to tell me why you thought sneaking out to see a boy this late on a school night was a good idea?"

Mariana silently shook her head no and kept her gaze downwards.

"Please look at me."

When Mariana's glossy eyes met Stef's the woman continued. "Do you know why it was a bad idea?"

This time Mariana nodded and a tear fell from her eyes. "I'm sorry, mom. I was only gonna be gone for like 10 minutes. He just wanted to tell me something." She tried to explain.

"It doesn't matter the reason. You broke the rules and you knew full-well that you were doing so." She said before cocking her head slightly to look at her daughter in the eyes. "Is there something more to this?" She asked quietly.

More tears began to fall as Mariana tried to look away, but Stef grabbed ahold of her hands and pulled the girl closer to her. "Mari, baby. I'm sorry but you know we have these rules to keep you safe." She said gently.

"I know" Mariana said, trying to hide the cry in her voice, but failing. "I didn't mean to lie." She said before dropping her head again.

"Come here" Stef said as she pulled her daughter closer to her body. She rested her head on the top of Mariana's head and took a deep breath. "Oh baby girl. I know you didn't. But you knew better. I know youo knew better and there are going to be consequences for your actions." She began. "You know, you never even asked us if you could see him." She said, pointing out the fact.

Mariana listed her head from Stef's shoulder and looked questiongly at her mother. "Wait. You would have let me go see him?" She asked, not believing what she was hearing.

"Well." Stef began. "I would have had to talk with mama, but he might have been able to stop over for a few minutes if it was something really important that he needed to discuss with you tonight. But that's the thing, baby. You didn't ask, you just did what you wanted." She finished before leaning over and kissing her daughter's forehead. "I love you so much, baby girl." She said before smoothing the teen's hair down and kissing her head again.

"I love you too, mom." Mariana said as she relaxed into her mother's loving arms. "I'm sorry." She whispered again.

"I know, baby. I know."

**Send some more requests! **


	3. Migraine

**Thanks to sunshinetuna1 for this suggestion.**

**Mariana has a migraine.**

8-year-old Mariana's head was pounding. She threw her hands up over her ears and closed her eyes, hoping that the pain would go away. She and Jesus had only been living with the Fosters for a little over three weeks and Mariana still hadn't talked to anyone except whispers to her brother.

"Your head again, hermana?" Jesus asked as he looked down at his twin who was crouched as far back in the closet as possible. She nodded her head slightly and Jesus sighed. He didn't think these new foster parents would do anything to hurt them, but they could never be too careful. When talking with some other kids from the foster system, one of the older kids told them that sometimes the parents won't want you anymore if you got sick too often, so anytime either one of them got sick, they would try their best to cover it up.

"Come on, loves!" Stef called into the room that the twins were staying in. They hadn't gotten the chance to show them their own rooms because Mariana wouldn't stay in a room without her brother.

Mariana squealed slightly, not wanting Stef to see her hiding in the closet, but her head was hurting too much for her to say or do anything.

"Ready for school you two?" Stef said as she poked her head into the room.

Jesus stood up quickly and walked towards Stef. He knew he needed to act fast in order to cover for his sister. "Umm I think I need help." He scrambled to make up a lie, but his mind was only half-focused on the woman. He was thinking more about his sister.

Stef crinkled her brow in confusion. "What do you need help with, buddy?" She asked, happy that he was asking for something; in her past experience, foster children usually weren't comfortable asking for many things right away.

"Ummm it's downstairs." He said before he started towards the door, but Stef reached her hand out to stop him before he got there.

"Is everything ok?" She asked, watching him continuously glance at the closet on the other side of the room.

"Yeah. Can you come with me?" He asked again, trying to get her away from the room, but little did he know, she had a pretty good idea that he was not the only child in the room.

"Where's your sister?" Stef asked bending down to the boy's level.

Jesus nervously looked around and then shrugged his shoulders. "I dono. Maybe downstairs." He tried.

Stef raised an eyebrow and chose her words carefully, "You wouldn't be lying to me, would you?" She started. "Because that's not a very good idea. I know you're smart enough to know better."

Slowly, the boy's face dropped and he hung his head. When he didn't respond, Stef continued. "Do you know where your sister is?" She asked and this time Jesus nodded his head slightly.

"Can you look at me, sweetie?" Stef said gently, still squatting at his level as to not to seem threatening. When he finally lifted his gaze Stef smiled and began to talk again. "You don't have to be afraid here in this house. You may get in trouble for disobeying, but you will never by physically punished and you will never be unsafe. Do you think you can trust me that I am telling the truth?"

Jesus looked into her eyes and slowly nodded his head. He had a gut feeling that Stef and Lena were different than most foster parents, but he was still hesitant.

"Good." Stef said with a bigger smile. "Now can you tell me where your sister is?" She asked again and this time, his gaze landed on the closet door. "She's in the closet?" Stef asked with a questioning tone. After he nodded to confirm she cocked her head slightly. "What's she doing in there?" She asked gently.

"Her head hurts." He said quietly.

Stef nodded as she understood why her twins were being so secretive. She had read online that sometimes foster children will hide when they are sick because they don't want to seem like they are a hassle to take care of. Stef smiled sadly and looked at the boy once more. "Thank you for telling me, baby. Do you think you could go downstairs and ask Lena to get you some breakfast while I talk to your sister?" She asked gently with a smile. "I might have some medicine she could take that can help with her headache." She explained.

"Ok" Jesus responded before turning to walk out the door. Before he reached the knob, he suddenly turned around and threw his arms around Stef's waist and gave her a hug.

Stef was taken by surprise but smiled deeply when she felt the boy wrap his arms around her. "Love you, sweetie." She said as she hugged him back.

Once Jesus was out of the room, Stef took a deep breath and made her way over to the closet. She got down on her hands and knees and pushed the door open slightly before peaking her head in slightly. "Mari, love?" She called out, though she didn't expect any sort of answer. She spotted the girl in the far corner and her heart sunk. "I'm gonna come in and sit across from you, ok?" She asked before slowly inching her way into the closet as well.

Once Stef was fully in the closet, she turned her body to face the girl who still had her hands over her ears and her eyes buried in her knees.

"Jesus told me your head was hurting." She stated, trying to get the girl to at least look up from her huddled position. When she didn't see any movement, she decided to continue to talk. "Can you show me where it hurts?"

This time, Stef saw a small hand move and with the little light from the partly opened closet door point to her head, ears and eyes. "Your head, ears and eyes?" Stef stated to make sure she got the correct information and the girl nodded ever so slightly to confirm.

"Oh baby I'm so sorry. Do you get headaches a lot, sweetie?" She asked, knowing they only had limited access to their health background. When she nodded her head slightly again, her heart broke for the girl.

"Ok well how about we get you some medicine to make you feel better?" Stef asked. "And I can stay home with you today and you can sleep." At the silent response, Stef started to move back out of the closet. Once she was halfway out, she extended her hand out to the young girl and gently said "Come on, baby."

Slowly, Mariana picked her head up and reached her own hand out towards Stef.

"That's it. Good job, sweetie. Take your time." She praised as the little girl slowly made her way out of the closet.

"Oh baby." Stef gasped when she was able to see her foster daughter's state. She was a sickly pale color and had beads of sweat on her hairline. "Come here, love." She said, holding her arms out for the girl and praying that she would allow Stef to pick her up.

Before Mariana was able to lift her arms up towards Stef, she threw her hand over her mouth and tried to get up to run to the garbage can, but couldn't find her footing, as she had been crouched in the closet for a half hour. She stumbled and as Stef reached her hands out to catch her, Mariana threw up onto the carpet.

Tears began to flow from the girl's eyes. Partly because she felt so sick, but partly because she just threw up on the carpet and thought she was going to get in trouble.

"Ok. Ok sweetie. You're ok." Stef said as she quickly grabbed the garbage can and brought it to the girl before reaching down and gently picking Mariana up. She carried both the garbage and the girl over to the bed and placed the can on the ground and Mariana on the bed. "Shhh, my sweet girl." Stef cooed as she pushed some sweats strands of hair off of the girl's face and some tears from her cheeks.

Mariana tried putting her hands over her ears, as the light and sound were making her head pound, but she felt another wave of nausea and had to remove her hands in order to lean over the side of the bed and empty the rest of her stomach.

"It's ok. Get all the yuckies out." Stef said as she held Mariana's hair back and rubbed soothing circles on her back.

Once she was done throwing up, Stef gently pushed her head back towards the pillow and put her hand on the girl's forehead to see if she had a fever.

Before Stef could determine whether or not she was warm, Mariana grabbed the blanket and threw it over her head before curling herself into a tiny ball.

Stef smiled sadly but made her way around to the other side of the bed, lifted the covers, and joined the girl. "Feel a little better?" She asked, hoping that after throwing up, she would feel even the slightest bit better.

Mariana didn't respond, and she kept her hands over her ears and her face buried.

A soft knock on the door caused Stef to peak her head out from under the covers and she saw Lena standing in the doorway with a confused look. "What's going on?" She whispered to Stef as the blonde slipped out of the covers and made her way to her wife.

"She was hiding in the closet, with a headache, and when I got her to come out, she began to throw up." She said, glancing at the vomit that was still on the rug by the closet door. "She also told me her eyes and ears were hurting." Stef said as they both thought about what could be the reason.

"Migraine" Lena said suddenly. "My friend used to get them all the time." She explained. "Lights and sounds made her head hurt like crazy and sometimes if it got too much, she would throw up."

Stef nodded her head and looked at the bad, where she could see a small ball shaped figure.

"Ok well I'm gonna stay with her, I'm off anyway so it's no problem. Are the boys ready?" Stef asked, realizing it was almost time for them to leave for school.

Lena looked at her watch and sighed. "I sent them to brush their teeth when I came in here." She explained. "They should be done."

"Ok. You go get to school and I'll stay with our little one. Hopefully get some toast into her and some pedialite." Stef whispered.

"Call me if you need anything." Lena said as she kissed her wife. "And make sure she drinks water. If nothing else, water. Even if she throws it up." Lena said, knowing dehydration was very possible.

"Ok, love."

Lena walked over to the bed and crouched down next to where she thought Mariana's head was. She whispered, "I love you, sweetie. Feel better. Mom is gonna stay with you but I'll come check on you as soon as I get home from work."

Lena stood up and kissed Stef once more before slipping out of the room, closing the door behind her to keep out as much light as possible.

Once Stef heard Lena explaining that Mariana was sick and that Stef was going to stay home with her to the boys and then their voices fading down the stairs, Stef walked back over to Mariana. She knelt down, much like Lena had done earlier and began to whisper to the girl. "My sweet baby girl. We're gonna get you all taken care of, ok?" She said as she pulled the covers off of the girl. She didn't want to hurt her anymore than she was already hurting, but she wanted to get her into the shower and out of the clothes she was in.

"Come here, baby" Stef said, pulling the girl gently out from under the covers. Letting only a small whimper from her lips, Mariana wrapped her small arms around Stef's neck and the mother lifted her off of the bed, placing her own arms protectively around the girl's back. "We're gonna make you feel all better, my sweetie." She said as she stroked the girl's brown hair. Stef smiled when she felt Mariana relax in her arms and rest her head in the crook of Stef's neck.

Stef kissed the girl's forehead, but left her lips lingering there for a few seconds before pulling away and rubbing more circles on her back. "You're ok. You're safe."

**Thanks for the reviews and suggestions!**


	4. Mom? Part 1

**FreakyGreenEyes suggestion- plus some others encouraged this. **

**Callie and Mariana go to a party and Liam is there. **

"I don't know, Mariana." Lena said tentatively as she continued to make dinner while her youngest daughter followed, pleading.

"Please. I won't be out past curfew and it's not a school night." She begged. Mariana wanted to go to the party mainly to see if Chase was there, the guy she was crushing on. "Don't you trust me?" She added.

"Yeah but it's the boys who I don't trust." She responded as she looked at her daughter. "Sweetheart." She began, taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry I just don't feel comfortable letting you go alone." She said simply.

Mariana groaned at first but her eyes lit up when she saw Callie walk into the room. She looked from her sister to her mother and raised an eyebrow. "What if Callie comes with?"

"Wait what?" Callie said as she went to the cabinet to grab a cup.

"Oh come on, Cal. It'll be fun. Andrea's house. Remember?" Mariana pleaded as she tried to give her a desperate look.

"Uh yeah. Sounds like fun." Callie said in a forced enthused voice.

"See mama. Callie will be there. And she won't let anything happen."

"Well." Lena said, putting down the owen mitts she had on, "If Callie really wants to go, you may both go."

"Yes!" Mariana cheered quickly.

"But you are both home by 11. Understand?" She asked giving both girls a stern look.

"Yes we understand, mama." The younger girl answered and grabbed the older teen's hand. "Come on! We have to get ready!" She squealed as she led the two of them upstairs.

* * *

"Thanks again, Callie. You're such a great sister." Mariana said as her eyes sparkled. She was so excited to hopefully have the chance to talk to Chase alone.

"Yeah. It's no problem." The girl responded with a smile as they walked into the house.

Beer cans and cups littered the house as teens filled each room. Callie looked around apprehensively, but Mariana took it all in with a smile on her face.

"Uhhh. Maybe we should go?" Callie said slowly.

"Oh hell no!" Mariana responded and grabbed her sister's arm to pull her in the rest of the way.

Mariana pulled them both into the first open room and Callie recognized some of the people from Anchor Beach. "Ok but don't..." Callie began before looking over at Mariana who already had a beer in her hands. "Drink" She finished, letting out a breath.

Mariana skipped back to Callie and happily informed her of her plans. "I'm gonna go find Chase. Keep your phone on in case I need to text you to get me out." She explained, as if it was common knowledge to do such a thing.

"Get out of what? Wait I don't think this is such a good idea..." Callie began before Mariana rolled her eyes. "You need to lighten up." She said before reaching over, grabbing a beer and handing it out to the older teen. "Just relax and have fun." She said seriously and then walked off to go find the boy.

Callie sighed deeply but put the can down. She knew she needed to be responsible for the both of them, so she took out her phone and began to scroll through them, hoping to find some pictures to edit.

* * *

Only a half hour had passed since the girls arrived at the party and Callie was getting bored. She checked her watch and noted that it was only 9:30. She sighed deeply and got up from the couch she had occupied since she got there to try and find someone she knew. As she made her way through the kitchen, a guy came out of nowhere and bumped into her causing his drink to spill all over the side of Callie's arm.

"Oh gosh! I'm so sorry!" The boy said, seemingly genuine in his apology, Callie smiled slightly and told him it was fine. She shook off what she could before looking around for a bathroom.

She reached what she assumed was the bathroom on the first floor, but when she saw there was a line, she decided to try and find another one. _Maybe I can find Mariana while I'm at it._ She thought to herself as she made her way to the stairs. She had noted earlier that not as many people seemed to be going to the second floor and decided to try there next. As she walked up the slightly winding staircase, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning around in the hopes that it was Mariana, Callie's face suddenly fell as she met the eyes of someone who she never thought she would have to see again. Liam.

"Get off of me." She said quietly, but with much force to her voice. She tried to shrug his hand off of her shoulder and keep walking, but he was much stronger and kept a firm grip. "What? You don't like this?" He asked with a coy smile. He allowed her to keep walking up the stairs but kept his hand on her shoulder the entire time. Once they got to the top of the landing, Callie spun around and looked at him straight in the eyes.

"What are you doing here?" She snarled, trying to sound as tough and unafraid as possible.

"What? I can't go to parties too?" He asked, making it sound like it was just a game and nothing was wrong with him being there and talking to her.

"Ok whatever just leave me alone." Callie said, trying to pull away, but this time he gripped her wrist and help on tightly. He leaned forward and whispered "I thought this is what you liked."

Callie gasped as she felt his hand on her back, stroking her shirt up and down. She tried to pull away from him but he pulled her closer and continued talking. "You liked it last time. I'll bet you wanted more. I can give you more, baby." He said, the smell of alcohol evident as he was inches away from her face.

"Let me go." Callie instructed, trying to hide the fear in her voice.

Liam simply smiled and reached his hand up the back of the teen's shirt. "You really want this, Cal. I know you do." He said as tears began to form in the girl's eyes.

Suddenly, a long bang of a door opening caused both Callie and Liam to stop and look up. Mariana was walking out of one of the rooms, a beer in one hand, Chase's hand clasped in the other. She was giggling hysterically until she saw her sister's face. She immediately let go of Chase's hand and walked over to Callie.

"Cal?" She asked, trying to sound as coherent as possible. She steadied herself against the banister as she looked at the older teen. "Callie?" She asked again, this time slightly louder. The girl seemed to be in a trance, she couldn't speak or make any sort of noise; she was frozen in fear. "Cal you're scaring me." Mariana said, now she was beginning to worry.

"She's fine." Liam said suddenly, wrapping his arm around Callie as if they were great friends. However, as soon as he touched her, she screamed and jumped back.

"No! No! Don't touch me!" She yelped and Mariana jumped at her sudden voice.

"Cal what's wrong?" Mariana didn't know who the guy was, but she figured he was not her friend by the way she reacted.

"And who is this?" Liam asked with a sickening tone, looking at Mariana.

"I'm gonna be sick." Callie suddenly said as she threw her hand over her mouth and ran into the bathroom, which was thankfully located next to the staircase. She made sure to grab ahold of her sister's arm as she raced into the room. Forcefully shoving the younger girl into the bathroom, she slammed the door shut and locked it before nearly missing the toilet to empty the contents of her stomach.

"Callie?" Mariana said timidly as the older girl flushed the toilet, stood up, and went to rinse her mouth out. She had forgotten all about Chase and the party and her only concern was on her sister who seemed to be freaking out. "What happened? Who was that?" She asked quietly.

Both girls jumped when they heard a pounding at the door. "Callie! I know you're in there! Come on, baby. I was just kidding."

Mariana looked at Callie and noticed her face had paled and her eyes were wide open in terror. The younger teen didn't know how to react as she had never seen Callie act so afraid before.

Another round of pounding on the door shook both girls from their thoughts and Callie backed herself as far away from the door as possible and put her hands over her head, as if she were protecting herself.

"Callie! Come on! It's fine. I promise we can just talk. Or maybe I can talk to that hot chick whose in there with you." Liam said at first, but when he received no answer he pounded on the door once more and snarled, "I'll find you. You can't hide." And with that, tears began to fall from the girl's eyes.

Taking in only what she could see, and being slightly tipsy, Mariana's emotions began to flood as she too felt tears sting her eyes. "Who is that?" She asked as she walked over to the girl who had slid down the wall and was hugging herself.

Callie didn't reply. She was too busy reminding herself to breathe and trying to come up with a way to get her and Mariana out of the house. She couldn't believe that he was there. _This can't be happening._ She thought to herself as her breathing picked up. _I can't. No. He can't. _She tried to concentrate, but her head was spinning.

Apparently, Mariana could see the erotic behavior because she spoke once again. "Callie. You're scaring me. What's wrong? What can I do?" The young girl was completely shocked to see the always tough teen falling apart in front of her eyes. She decided she had to do something, because it seemed like Callie was having a panic attack- something that Mariana had experienced when she first was in the foster system. "Ok. I'm gonna go out and find Chase. He can help..." She started before a panicked Callie reached out and grabbed her hand to keep her from leaving.

"No! You can't leave!" She said, feeling embarrassed to be reacting like this to the girl, but feeling more worried about what could happen if Liam found Mariana.

"I don't know what to do, Cal" She said, shaking her head. "Who is that guy?" She asked one more time.

Callie took a deep breath. She knew she needed to calm herself down. She wasn't doing her or Mariana any favors by freaking out. However, every time she tried to take in a breath, it would get caught halfway in her throat. The images of Liam flooded back into her head and she found herself struggling to breathe once again. This time, she reached her hand out to get the attention of her sister. She muttered a word that she thought she never would, but ultimately knew it needed to be said.

"Mom"

Mariana crinkled her forehead as if to clarify what she thought she heard. _Callie just called Stef mom. _"What?" She wanted to make sure she was hearing everything correctly.

Callie took a deep breath and at the sound of Liam tapping the door and calling her name, she sobbed, "I need mom."

Mariana smiled, simply because she had heard right, and nodded her head. "Ok. We can go home." She said as she stood up, reaching down to help the older teen up. "I'll text Chase and he can drive us." She said, but Callie wasn't moving.

"Caaaaaallieeeeeee" Liam sang and the tears fell harder as she tried to explain.

"No. Mari I... we can't... we can't go out. I..." She gasped. "I... I need m..." She gasped again. "Need mom!" She forced out as she began to rock back and forth.

Mariana dropped her still outstretched hand and looked down at the girl who had always been so incredibly strong, even when everything seemed to go against her. She realized that this guy or whatever happened must be a huge deal for her to break down like this. Mariana didn't want to call her mom, simply because she didn't want her to know she had been drinking, but the look on Callie's face and the fear in her voice overpowered her thoughts as she fished out her phone from her pocket and dialed Stef's number.

"Ok. I'm calling her." Mariana said as she kneeled down next to the teen and wrapped her arm around her shoulders.

* * *

Lena and Stef had settled into bed early that night to watch a movie. Their oldest children were all out for at least another hour, and Jude was in his room. They both knew that Stef wouldn't be able to fall asleep until each one of her children arrived home safely, but Lena thought a little alone time would be nice. So, they put in a movie and both got into pajamas as they sat in bed. Most of the time they spent talking about their days and about the kids. They were enjoying each other's company, and loving being able to kiss one another in privacy.

When Stef's phone began to buzz on the table next to her side of the bed, Lena stopped kissing Stef.

"Wha? Wait Why?" Stef pouted and Lena gave her a questioning look.

"Your phone." She answered as she looked towards the buzzing cell on the table.

"Mmm leave it." She said as she tried to kiss her wife again."

"What if it's one of the kids?" Lena asked in a concerned voice, trying to push Stef over to pick up the phone.

"Well I guess I get get it now that the mood is ruined." Stef gave Lena a playful smile and reached over in time to answer her phone.

"Hello?"

Lena laid her head down on Stef's chest and listened to her wife talk.

"Mari?" Stef asked and Lena smiled because she had been right. But before she could gloat, Stef sat straight up and began to pace around the room. "What? What happened?" She asked in a nervous voice. This, in turn, caused Lena to become worried and she looked at her wife, silently begging her to explain what was going on.

Stef put the phone on speaker so they could both hear.

"Say that again, baby." Stef said quickly.

_"We were at the party and some guy was like I don't really know like talking to Callie and all of a sudden she freaked out and threw up and we're in the bathroom and I don't know what's happening." _The girl spoke quickly and quietly, as to not let Callie overhear her conversation.

"Who was she talking to? What is Callie doing now?" Lena asked as Stef went to get her shoes and jacket on.

This time, Mariana's voice sounded even quieter than before. _"Mama. I'm scared. I think she's having a panic attack. She's in a corner and crying. I've never seen her like this."_ She informed the moms as her own tears began to fall as well.

Lena could hear the girl's voice shaking and she took a deep breath. "Ok, sweetie. Mom is on her way. I'm gonna stay here with Jude." She explained. She and Stef didn't even need to talk it through, they knew someone needed to go and someone needed to stay. They also both knew that Stef would be able to handle the party better and Lena would be able to handle Jude better, if he were to find out what was going on.

_"Ok"_ The small voice responded.

"Here. I'm gonna give the phone to mom and she's coming right now." Lena said as she handed the phone to her wife and gave her a quick kiss before she ran out of the room.

On the way down the stairs, Stef had turned the phone off of speaker and was trying to talk to a frantic Mariana. "Ok, sweets. I need the address."

Once she punched the address into the GPS and saw that it was only a 10 minute drive, she threw the car in reverse and continued to talk to her daughter. "Ok. You're doing a great job, sweetie." She said lovingly, as she could hear the fear in the girl's voice. "Is Callie there?" She asked, hoping to be able to hear the older girl's voice and calm her down too.

Stef heard the sounds of muffled talking and then silence. She waited for a moment before asking, "Callie?"

Stef heard several short breaths, but waited for the girl to respond. Finally, she heard a tired voice. _"Stef?"_

Stef's heart began to beat faster as she could hear the panic in her other daughter's voice too.

"Hi baby!" She tried to sound cheerful as she spoke to the girl and sped down the road. "Can you tell me what happened?" She asked, hoping that she would get Callie to talk even a little.

_"I... I... he..."_ She tried, but Stef heard muffled voices again and then Mariana's voice once more. _"Mom."_ Her voice sounded so small.

"Yes my love."

_"Please hurry."_

That was all Stef needed to hear to step on the gas. "I'm coming, loves." She continued to talk to both of her girls. A squeal from both girls caused Stef's heart to race. "What happened?" She asked quickly.

_"He... He keeps banging on the door and yelling"_ Mariana explained quietly.

Stef closed her eyes and continued looking down at how far away she was. "Ok I am only 3 minutes away." She said eagerly. When she got no response, she continued talking. "Mari. Talk to me. What's happening?"

_"She's just sitting there."_ Mariana explained softly, and Stef knew she was talking about Callie.

"Can you hand her the phone, please?"

After a few moments of muffled noise, Stef could hear a new breathing pattern through the phone and knew it was Callie's. "Hey, my love. Keep holding on, ok?" Stef had no idea what had gotten the girl all worked up, but knowing Callie and knowing how she carried herself, it must have been something pretty bad for her to get this upset about. "Can you talk to me?" Stef tried again. _"Stef"_ Was the only word she could muster out and Stef's heart sank.

"Ok. I'm pulling in." Stef announced as she threw the car in park and grabbed her keys and phone. She looked around and noticed the cans of beer and shook her head. _Mariana has a lot of explaining to do. _She thought as she walked towards the front door. She put the phone back up to her ear and continued to talk. "Mariana?" She asked, knowing it would be easier to talk to her younger daughter.

_"Wait. Mom. Can you wait outside? Please? Let me try and get Callie to walk out with me. Please?"_ Her voice was urgent and Stef could see why. She knew it would be humiliating for her daughter if her cop mother were to barge into the house to escort the two of them out, however, she didn't know if Callie would walk out on her own will. _"Please? I'm talking to Callie and we're gonna be out in 2 minutes."_ She said confidently and Stef weighed the options. Finally, she exhaled deeply and spoke, "Ok. But keep the phone on and if I hear anything I don't like, I'm coming in."

Stef could hear Mariana sigh in relief and kept a mental note to have a talk with her youngest daughter about this later. However, right now she was more focused on the girls getting out.

* * *

"Ok Cal. Mom is here. We just have to meet her outside." Mariana informed the girl, who was still staring off in a trance. "Callie?" Mariana walked over to her and squatted down. "Please?" She asked, her voice shaking. As if Mariana's scared manner snapped the older girl out of whatever trance she was in, Callie looked up. "Callie, please. I'm scared." Mariana confessed, but was glad when her sister's eyes met her own.

"Come on." She said as she stood up and took a firm grasp on the younger girl's wrist. "We're gonna walk out of here quickly and go right to the door." Callie instructed, making sure that she had a good grip on her sister's hand. "Ok?" She asked forcefully.

"Ok." Mariana responded quietly, hoping that when the door was opened, everything would be clear and they could leave. She hadn't heard Liam in a while, and hoped that he had given up and walked away, but she was beginning to regret telling her mother to wait outside.

"Ok. Let's go." Callie said as she grabbed the doorknob and twisted it open. She checked outside of the door while keeping Mariana behind the door- protecting her as best as possible, just as she had done with Jude for so many years. Callie breathed a huge sigh of relief when she saw that Liam was not outside of the bathroom and whispered. "Let's go" once more to Mariana.

Both girls walked quickly, hand-in-hand down the stairs and to the doors, Callie threw open the door and yanked Mariana out, who by now had sobered up significantly, but still had traces of alcohol in her system. As the girls made it into the fresh air, Mariana began to tear up as she saw her mom waiting by the edge of the driveway, but Callie stopped walking all together.

_What have I done?_ She thought to herself. _How could I be so __vulnerable? _She asked as she finally had a moment to replay the past hour in her head.

"My babies." Stef finally could release the breath she had been holding as she waited. She walked towards Mariana and saw that huge tears were beginning to fall down her cheeks and her heart broke. "Mari, love." She said as she opened her arms and engulfed her youngest daughter in a hug. She kissed the girl's temple several times before pulling the girl back and cupping her face in her hands. "Thank you for calling me." She said sincerely, knowing it was probable not the reaction Mariana had thought Stef would show.

As Stef pulled Mariana back towards her for another hug, she looked around for Callie. When she spotted the other girl standing on the grass, looking down, Stef patted her daughter on the arm and handed her the keys. "Will you please go start the car while I get Callie?" She asked, trying not to let the worry come out in her voice. Mariana nodded as she wiped her eyes. She knew Callie needed to be with her mom alone.

Stef watched as her younger daughter walked to the car before turning towards her older daughter. She sighed sadly as she approached the girl. Before she even reached her, she could tell that the teenager was fighting off sobs as she processed the night.

"Callie?" Stef said quietly, trying not to startle the girl.

Callie looked over at Stef and her eyes glistened with fresh tears. "Oh my love." Stef said as she reached an arm out and around the girl's shoulders. "Let's get you home." Stef knew she needed to talk with her daughter, but she didn't want to do it on the front lawn of some random family's home.

It took all but that slight touch for Callie to fall to the ground and curl herself up into a ball in a protesting form.

"Callie?" Stef called as she dropped to the ground next to the girl who had throw up her walls and was not planning on talking.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't know he was gonna be there. I didn't know she was gonna be there with him. I'm sorry." She repeated and Stef wasn't sure who she was talking to.

"Callie." Stef said in a more firm tone. "Come on. I'm gonna help you up and we're gonna get into the car, drive home, take a nice shower and talk." She explained as she reached over to the shaking girl, praying that her touch wouldn't frighten her any more than she already was.

Thankfully, Callie didn't retreat from Stef's touch and allowed the woman to help her stand up and walk back to the car. Once Stef had Callie settled in the back seat next to Mariana, she buckled her in and left a lingering kiss on her forehead. "I love you baby. I love you so much. You're gonna be ok."


	5. Mom? Part 2

**Hellooooooo!**

**So once again, sorry about the delay. I got sick, had finals, and got sick again. But now I am on break and will be able to update my stories! Thank you so much for being patient! **

**This is part 2 to Mom? where Callie tells Stef about Liam. Short mention of rape, but not detailed. **

* * *

The ride home was silent, minus the soft sobs coming from the backseat. Stef glanced back at her daughters every few minutes to reassure herself that they were alright- that they were still there. Stef had texted Lena that they were on their way home after she had gotten Callie into the car and she knew her wife would be waiting up for them at the house. Finally, after what seemed like an hour, Stef pulled into the driveway, put the car in park, and took the keys out of the ignition. The car remained silent and not one of the girls moved. Finally, Stef took a breath and turned to face her daughters.

"Ok, my loves." She said, trying to mask the concern that was taking over her mind. "Let's get both of you inside, yes?" She asked before she unbuckled herself and got out of the driver's seat.

Mariana followed in suit, unbuckling and opening her door, but stopped when she saw that Callie hadn't moved. She looked at her sister and forced a smile. "Come on, Cal." The younger girl didn't know how to go about the situation at hand. Callie had always been the one to offer advice and say the right thing with Mariana was struggling. Now, as the roles were reversed, she didn't know what to say to help.

Stef saw the delimea and opened Callie's door for her. She squatted down next to the teen and tried to catch the girl's distant gaze. "Sweetheart. Can we get you inside?" She asked gently, hoping the teen would unbuckle herself. Stef sighed when Callie remained still and slowly stood up, bent her head into the car, and reached over the girl. "I'm gonna unbuckle you, ok?" She asked as she heard the click. Stef looked up at her younger daughter and smiled in order to relax the girl who was looking at her sister with a lost look.

"Hey baby girl will you do me a big favor and get mama and ask her to come out here? Then I want you to take a shower and get into bed. Ok? I promise I will be in to tuck you in as soon as I get your sister inside."

Mariana looked from her mother, to her sister, and then back to her mother before nodding her head and making her way out of the car. She started walking towards the front door when Stef pulled herself out of the side of the car and walked towards her youngest daughter.

She grabbed ahold of the girl and pulled her into a hug. She could feel the girl shake, which only made her hug tighter. "I'm so proud of you." Stef praised as she pulled her daughter's face into her hands. "Now go on inside, ok?" She said as she kissed the girl's forehead. Mariana nodded and continued walking as Stef watched.

Once the teen had made it to the door, she looked back at the car and inhaled deeply. She didn't know what happened at that party, but she knew that it was bad, considering how her always strong daughter was reacting.

Stef walked back to Callie's side door and resumed her previous position squatting next to the girl. "Hey, sweetheart." She said in a gently tone, using a finger to tuck a loose strand of hair behind the girl's ear. "Can we get you inside? I don't want you catching a cold out here." She explained as she cocked her head, hoping to see some sort of reaction from the girl.

"You're scaring me, love." Stef confessed when she saw no movement from the girl except for the slow blinking and shallow breaths. "Sweetie?" Stef tried once more, not knowing where to go from here. On one hand, she wanted to reach in, pick up the girl and take her inside, but she knew that it wouldn't only embarrass her, but it might frighten her. She wasn't sure how to handle the situation and she was thankful when she heard the front door open and Lena walk out towards the car.

Stef shot her wife a forced smile before turning back towards the teen. Lena walked over to her wife and ducked her head into the car. "Hi, honey!" Lena greeted the girl.

Stef looked up at her and shook her head, indicating that she wasn't receiving any responses from her either. "Hey Callie." Lena tried again. "Can you come inside with us? Please?"

Stef sighed and stood up, stretching her legs slightly from being in a crouched position for so long. She turned towards her wife and gave her a look of despair. "Lena. I don't know what to do. I don't want to scare her by touching her, but she isn't moving."

"What happened at the party?" Lena wondered, not knowing if either girl had told her any more information than they had heard on the phone.

Stef shrugged. "I dono really. All I know is there was some guy who showed up and Callie freaked. She hasn't talked since I got to them."

Lena bit her lower lip, trying to think of the best solution to the problem at hand. "Ok. Well if she doesn't want to come inside to talk, maybe we can talk to her out here." She spoke out loud.

Stef nodded at the idea and looked back towards the car, her heart sinking at the vacant look in the girl's eyes. "Yeah. We can try that."

Before either mother could move, they heard the front door open and saw Mariana sticking her head out.

"Mari, sweetie I thought you were taking a shower." Stef reminded the girl.

"I was just..." The Latina started to speak as she made her way towards the car. "Is Callie gonna be ok?" She asked in almost a whisper. "I mean I don't know what happened but I... I didn't mean for something to happen. It's my fault that I took her to that party. I didn't mean for her to get scared." She began to ramble as the mothers looked at one another. They had a silent conversation and knew that one of them needed to address their other daughter as well.

Lena walked towards the younger girl and grabbed her hands gently. "You're ok, sweetie. Come on. Mom is gonna talk with Callie for a bit and we're gonna go get you into the shower before talking, ok?" She said as she lead the girl back to the house. "It's not your fault. Callie said she wanted to go to the party too, ok?" Lena began to explain as the two made their way up the stairs.

Stef let out a sign of relief and disappointment. Relief that Mariana was with Lena, but disappointment because she didn't have her wife to help talk to Callie.

After watching the front door close once more, she gently closed Callie's side door before quickly walking towards the other back door, opening it up, climbing inside, and closing it behind her. The car was silent and dark, as the internal lights had shut off. Stef reached up and flicked on one of the manual lights, which allowed ehr to see the girl sitting next to her.

"Hi, my love." Stef began, praying that she would be able to gain some insight to the night. She forced a small smile before tilting her head towards the direction of the girl's face. "Can you look at me?" She asked gently. "Please, sweetheart? It's just you and me." She assured the girl, knowing she didn't like to show her vulnerability.

Finally, Callie moved her head towards the blonde. Immediately, Stef could see large tears forming in the girl's eyes and her heart broke for the girl. "Oh, baby." She cooed as she opened her arms in the hopes that the teen would allow her to hug her.

As if overtaken by emotions beyond her grasp, Callie flung herself into Stef's open arms and tears began to pour down her cheeks.

At first, Stef was stunned by the amount of contact and emotions the teen was displaying, but she quickly recovered by pulling the girl in closer to her body and stroking the girl's arm with her hands.

Callie's body shook with sobs as she relived her encounters with Liam, both from that night and from when he was her foster brother. All of her emotions were brimming over the surface and she couldn't stop them. She had kept quiet about the event for so long, and had shoved all of her feelings about Liam down, that she couldn't stop them once they began to flow.

"Shhhh. Sweetheart. You're ok. You're alright, my love." Stef soothed the girl as best as she could, not knowing what else to say at the moment. She was content with just holding the girl as she let out whatever she needed to before they began to talk, however, it had been a few minutes and Callie's tears were not slowing. In fact, it seemed that they were pouring out faster and she was beginning to struggle to breathe.

"Cal?" Stef said once she realized that the girl was having difficulty breathing on account of her crying. "Sweets come on." She said gently, but with authority as she pushed the girl up from where she had been resting against her. She needed the girl to sit up so she could breathe easier. "I need you to calm down for me." She instructed as she tried to get the attention of the brunette who was still looking down, struggling to take in a full breath.

"Callie!" Stef raised her voice, urgent to get the girl's attention, who was beginning to hyperventilate. She quickly pushed the girl up fully so she was sitting upright against the seat and took her face into her hands, creating a line of contact between their eyes. "Callie. Breathe. Now. In and out. In and out. Do it with me. Come on." She instructed. She wasn't exactly knowledgable on panic attacks, as none of her children had had one before, but she did what came first to her head, and it seemed to work. Slowly, the girl's breathing began to return to its normal pace and she was able to inhale the oxygen needed.

Although the girl's breathing was regulated, her tears had not stopped. Callie was mortified. Never had she shown so many emotions to someone. She tried her hardest, but she could not get herself to calm down her emotions.

"Callie?" Stef's voice pulled her from her thoughts. Callie looked up hesitantly and tried to focus on her foster mother. "Can we go inside to get you some water?" She asked with a smile.

When she received no response once again, Stef exhaled and turned her body to face the teen next to her. "Ok, my love. We can talk out here. But I need you to take some more deep breaths for me, ok?" She instructed, knowing she could make herself sick by the severity of her crying.

Callie nodded. She so desperately wanted to stop all of her current emotions and forget about the whole thing all together. She would much rather Stef had simply taken her inside and said they would talk about it tomorrow. But now she was in the back seat of a car, crying hysterically, while her foster mother just let it happen. _I'm such a baby._ The teen thought to herself as she shook her head, hoping that it would help her tears to halt.

Stef could sense that Callie was becoming frustrated with herself. "You're fine, love." She assured the girl. "We can stay out here as long as you need to."

Finally after what seemed like hours, Callie was able to control her tears until they finally stopped all together. The brunette inhaled deeply and focused her gaze on the ground- hoping to avoid any eye contact or conversation with the woman sitting next to her. However, Stef had other plans. "Can you tell me what happened?" She asked gently, knowing that the teen was most likely exhausted and wouldn't want to talk any more than she had to.

Callie's mind flew back to the party. To Liam. To his house. To that night. The emotions threatened to come back and pour out once more, but Callie stopped them before they could be seen. "Umm. You know, I'm really tired. Thank you so much for coming to get us." She began as she made sure to grab her phone and checked the ground for any other belongings before reaching over to the door handle. "It's really not that big of a deal." She explained as she opened the door. "But really. Thank you." She continued as she began to climb out of the car.

Stef could see the girl throw up her walls right in front of her and was determined to keep it from fully happening. As soon as Callie began to thank her, she knew it would be pulling teeth to get the whole story. She immediately opened up her side door and quickly made her way around to the girl's to meet her.

"I'm gonna head to bed." Callie said quickly as she tried to pass the blonde, but Stef put her hands out and steadied the girl.

"Callie." Stef said simply, waiting for a response from the girl who was back to staring at the ground.

"Callie. This was not nothing. Whatever happened, you can tell me. It will not change how much I love you. But you need to be honest with me." She explained.

The teen bit her lip in order to hold back the new wave of tears that had formed. She knew that Stef was only trying to help, but this was something she had kept to herself for many years and she didn't even know where to begin. _Maybe I can just explain what happened tonight_. She thought to herself, hoping that she could avoid the initial incident all together.

"Cal?" Stef's voice pulled the girl from her thoughts once more and finally, Callie looked up at her foster mother.

"Oh, sweetheart." Stef's lips pursed together in sadness as she saw the girl's brown eyes filled with fresh tears. "Come on. Let's get inside and talk on the couch. Ok?" She said as she wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders and began to walk both of them towards the house. When Callie locked her knees in an effort to stay put, Stef tilted her head so she was facing the girl and continued talking. "Lena is upstairs with Mariana, Jude is in bed, and the boys won't be home for a while. I promise it will be just the two of us." Stef explained and released a sigh of relief when the girl began to walk with her to the door.

* * *

After getting Callie into the house, Stef led her to the living room and sat her down on one of the couches.

"I'm gonna get you some water, ok?" She asked as she grabbed a blanket from the other couch and placed it next to the teen. "Do you need anything else?"

Callie simply shook her head and looked down to her jeans, picking at a loose string.

Stef sighed and nodded. "Ok. Be right back."

Callie waited until Stef had walked into the kitchen before exhaling a breath she didn't even know she was holding. _Pull yourself together._ She instructed herself. _Tell her only what she asks for, nothing more. You can do this. _

A few minutes later, Stef returned to the living room with two glasses of water and an apple that she had sliced up. "I didn't know if you were hungry." She explained as she put all three items on the coffee table in front of the couch and sat down next to the teen. She waited a moment to let Callie situate herself before she licked her dry lips and began to talk.

"Ok. I know you don't want to talk, but this is something that is obviously very important and keeping it to yourself will only make things worse for you in the long run." Stef began, hoping that if she comforted the girl as much as possible at the beginning, then she would allow herself to speak to Stef. "And I know you have had some terrible adults in your life previously, who might take advantage of whatever is bothering you, but I want you to know that in this house, you are safe. You are loved and you are cared about. I'm here to listen and hopefully do what I can to help you. But for me to help, I need you to trust me enough to talk." She concluded. "Do you think you can trust me enough?" She asked, praying that the answer would be yes.

Callie didn't respond for a moment. Deep down she felt like she could trust Stef, but she had been played by trust before and it had only broken her when she realized that the person who she thought she could trust was lying. However, finally looking up from her jeans, she could tell that Stef wasn't going to let her leave until they talked, so she figured she needed to say something.

"I... Ummm." She began, praying that she would be able to get through this without falling apart.

As if she could read her mind, Stef responded gently. "It's ok. I know this is hard, but you are safe. Take your time. I'm not going anywhere."

Callie nodded as she blinked back a tear. "Uhh. There was a guy who I saw there. Umm someone who I knew from a different foster house and he uhh he and I didn't uhhh I don't really get along with him." She began, her line of sight moving around the room. "He was at the party and I got scared that I mean I hadn't seen him in a long time so I wasn't like ready to see him. And it kinda scared me I guess." She stumbled through the night as quickly as she could. "Uhh and when I saw him, I saw Mariana and told her I needed to go to the bathroom and then he kept pounding on the door. He was drunk, but it was kinda scary. So I asked Mari to call you." She finished, inhaling deeply and hoping that it would be enough for the woman.

Stef waited silently until Callie lifted her eyes up and they met. "It seemed like it was something a little more than that, sweetie." She said gently. She didn't like to point out when she thought one of her children was saying something wrong or dishonest, but she knew this was a situation in which she needed to pry in order to get the truth that she had a gut feeling wasn't pretty.

"Uhh I mean he scares me so I wanted to get out." Callie tried again.

"Sweetheart." Stef said as she grabbed ahold of the girl's hands and gently squeezed them. "Please. You're alright. I just want to help you. Please let me help you."

Stef's eyes said more than her words and Callie could feel a lump form in her throat.

"Uhh. Well he was... he was a foster brother." She began. "And he was one of the first people to actually seem like he cared about me. He gave me candy secretly and stole money from his parents and gave it to me. He made me feel special." She said and tried to swallow the lump in her throat.

"But after a while, he started doing things that weren't really allowed." She looked up to Stef who gave her an encouraging smile and gently squeezed her hands, which she still had ahold of. "He would hold my hand under the blanket and kiss me on the cheek. Uhhh and then one day he kissed me." She looked to the blonde thinking that she would look disgusted with her, but she only nodded her head. "He made me feel like I was worth something, so I let it happen." She explained.

"Keep going, sweetie. You're doing a great job."

Callie nodded and inhaled deeply before continuing. "Uhh one day. Uhh he told me he wanted to have sex. And I... I didn't want to... I wasn't ready." She was blinking back tears, but they began to form too quickly and a few fell. "Uhh he... he waited until everyone was out to dinner and took me into his room... and he... he said we were going to do it." By now the tears were falling freely down both girl's faces. "He forced me to... forced me to have sex with him." She finally said what she had been holding in for so many years. It felt like a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders and she collapsed into Stef's lap, not bothering to hold back any tears.

Stef quickly gathered the girl in her lap and held her close. She assumed that she was one of if not the only people who knew about this, based on her current reaction. She didn't know what to say in order to comfort the girl, so she stuck with rubbing random shapes on the girl's back and gently rocking her in her arms.

After a solid 10 minutes of silence, Stef looked over at the clock and saw that it was almost 11 and that the boys would be home shortly. She knew Callie would be mortified if they saw her in this state, so she kissed the girl on the top of the head and spoke softly. "Thank you for telling me, sweetheart. You are so brave. I am so proud of you." She knew there was much more that they needed to discuss, but at the moment, she knew Callie was drained and would be better off sleeping and talking in the morning.

Stef lifted the girl's face up towards her own and smiled. "Let's get you upstairs, yes? We can talk more tomorrow."

Callie nodded as she wiped the stray tears from her cheeks and stood up. Stef stood up next to her daughter and wrapped her arm around her shoulders, pulling her into a standing hug. "I love you." She said simply to the girl.

"Thank you."


	6. It's Not Fair

**Lena and Jude talk about Frankie and Colleen. **

**Please send more requests! And thanks for reading!**

"Oh! You're up?!" Stef exclaimed as she watched her wife slowly travel down the stairs. They had lost the baby only a week prior, and Lena had been in bed for most of the time, due to her healing body.

Lena smiled at her wife. "Yeah." She stated quietly. She hadn't been very vocal since losing the baby.

Stef smiled and walked towards the stairs to meet her. "You hungry?" She asked in a hopeful voice.

Lena shook her head no and Stef sighed. She had barely eaten since she was released from the hospital. "How about something light?" She tried again, hoping that Lena would get at least a little something in her stomach.

Lena sighed. She knew that Stef was just looking out for her well-being, but she really had no appetite. It hurt too much to eat. However, she knew that worried look would not leave the blonde's face until she ate something so she slowly nodded her head. "Sure, love."

"Ok! How about toast? With butter?" Stef said with excitement as she led Lena to the breakfast nook. Lena merely nodded and sat down, clutching her side in pain.

"I'll get your pain meds in a second, ok?" Stef said as she grabbed some bread out and stuck it in the toaster. Again, Lena nodded and looked forward at nothing in particular.

Stef sighed at the lack of verbal answer, but continued to talk, in the hopes that her wife would begin to respond. "So, kids will start coming down in a few minutes. I'm gonna take them to school and I have to go into work to grab some paperwork to do at home. But when I get home, we can spend the rest of the day doing whatever you like." She paused, waiting for a response, but when she got none, she continued. "Anything special you would like to do today, love?"

Lena looked towards her wife and bit her lip. "I don't care." She finally responded before turning her head towards the stairs, where she heard footsteps, indicating that her children were coming downstairs for breakfast.

Stef decided to wait and talk with her wife after the kids left, so she turned her attention towards the stairs as well and smiled when she saw Brandon, Mariana and Jesus emerge into the kitchen. "Morning, babies!" She exclaimed with a smile.

Three "morning"s were the response as the kids went to grab something for breakfast. Mariana was the first one to notice that Lena was not in bed. "Mama!" she exclaimed and walked over towards her mother, her brothers stopping what they were doing to look over.

Lena seemed to snap out whatever she was thinking about and smiled slightly at her daughter. "Hi, sweetie." She greeted her daughter.

"Are you feeling better?" Mariana asked, sitting across from the woman.

Lena smiled again and nodded. "Yeah. A little, I guess." She agreed. She was after all out of bed on her own accord.

"Yay!" The teen responded, smiling brightly.

"Mari, love. Come eat, please. You can chat with mama after school today." Stef said as she walked up to her daughter and kissed her head before placing the toast, medicine, and a glass of water in front of her wife.

"Ok." She responded with a slump of her shoulders. She got up and walked to the refrigerator as Stef continued talking. "Hey. Where are Callie and Jude?" She asked as she looked around and saw that only 3 of her children had come downstairs.

"I dono." She replied, shrugging her shoulders. Stef looked at the boys who replied in a similar way.

Suddenly, more footsteps could be heard and Callie quickly made her way into the kitchen. Before Stef could open her mouth, Callie walked over to her and Lena with a concerned look on her face. "I think Jude is sick." She informed the mothers, biting her bottom lip in anxiousness. She was still getting used to the fact that she didn't have to be the one to always take care of her brother.

"Ok, sweets. Thanks for telling us." Stef said as she reached out and squeezed the teen's arm gently. "Why don't you go grab something to eat and I will go check on him?"

Callie nodded with a small smile and Stef moved down towards her wife to give her a gentle hug. "I'll be right back, my love." She whispered as she kissed her wife's cheek.

* * *

Stef stood outside of her younger sons' door and listened for a moment. She didn't hear anything, so she knocked a few times before opening the door. Stef smiled at the young boy, who was lying in his bed, half of his school clothes on, the other half waiting to be put on; as if he had fallen asleep while changing.

Stef walked over to the boy and grabbed his pajamas up off of the floor before taking a seat on the boy's bed. At the sudden movement, Jude opened his eyes and stared at Stef with a slightly confused face. After a moment, he realized that he was late and began to rush to put the rest of his clothes on.

"Sorry!" He exclaimed as he pulled his shirt on.

"Sweetie." Stef said with a smile as she put her hand on his arm to stop his movements. "Are you not feeling well?" She asked, cocking her head and putting her free hand on the boy's forehead.

Jude slumped his shoulders and looked down. "Well kinda. But Callie came and checked on me. But I can probably go to school." He rushed through his words and looked up slightly.

Stef shook her head. "What hurts, my love?"

Jude shrugged. "I dono. My head and stomach a little."

"Why don't you change back into these" She began, holding out the pajamas she had picked up off of the floor, "and hop back into bed. You can stay home with mama and me today, ok?" She instructed.

"Are you sure?" Jude asked quietly.

Stef smiled again and kissed his temple. "I'm sure, baby." Stef said as she helped the boy back under the covers and kissed his forehead once again. "Hmm you seem a little warm." She commented after touching her lips to his forehead. "I'm gonna get the thermometer." She said as she walked out of the room.

Stef headed down the stairs to grab the thermometer, some water, and a piece of toast, just in case Jude got hungry. As she walked into the kitchen, Jesus and Brandon were just bringing their plates up to the sink, and her daughters were just finishing up their breakfast.

"Alright, my loves. Jude is staying home. He's sick. So I'm gonna need you guys to walk to school, ok?" She asked as she went the the drawer to grab the thermometer.

Brandon looked up and nodded before he turned to finish getting ready.

"Jesus. Did you remember to take your..." Stef began before she heard a groan from her middle son "Yes, mom!"

Stef turned and raised an eyebrow at her son's attitude. "Watch the attitude."

Jesus muttered a sorry before following his brother up the stairs.

Stef put a piece of toast into the toaster before turning to her daughters, who were still finishing up. "That means get a move on, babies." She exclaimed as she walked over to her wife, who hadn't moved since she went to check on Jude.

"Hi, babe. How are you feeling?" Stef asked as she heard the girls get up to put their plates in the sink as well before climbing back up the stairs.

Lena shrugged and Stef noted that the medicine was gone, but that only half of the glass of water had been drunk and only a bite of toast was missing. "Not hungry?" She asked with a sigh.

Lena shook her head and looked up. "Sorry."

Stef's face fell into sadness. "You don't have to apologize, baby."

"Is Jude ok?" Lena asked, hoping to shift her focus away from her own pain.

Stef nodded as she walked back over to the toast she was making. "He wanted to try and go to school, but I could feel that he has a slight fever. Plus, he looked pale." She walked back over to her wife with everything she needed for Jude. "How about I take you back upstairs and you can sleep some more until I get home? Ok?"

Lena nodded and allowed Stef to help her stand up before the two of them slowly walked up the stairs.

* * *

Lena was in a restless sleep when she heard one door open and another one slam shut. She fully woke herself up and her forehead crinkled as she thought about who was still home with her. _Jude!_ she thought as she slowly got herself out of bed. Her pain was still there, but it had dulled, so it didn't hurt as much when she made it out of her room and to the kids' bathroom, which was the only door upstairs that was fully shut.

"Jude?" She called out as she softly knocked on the door.

She heard no response except for the flushing of the toilet and the sink turning on.

"Sweetie, are you ok?" She tried again. Realizing that when she was able to focus on Jude, everything seemed to hurt a little less.

Finally, after the water shut off, the door opened and Jude emerged from the bathroom.

"Oh, honey!" She exclaimed as she reached out and felt his forehead. "Oh baby. You're warm. Did mom take your temperature?" She asked as she noted his pale color.

Jude nodded and rubbed his eyes.

"Come 'ere." Lena said as she led him into her room. She sat him down on the bed before taking a seat next to him. "What hurts?"

"My stomach and head." He muttered as he rubbed his eyes again.

"Did she already give you some medicine?"

Once again, Jude nodded.

"Ok, sweetie. Why don't you rest here with me so I can keep an eye on you." She suggested as she pulled back the covers and let the boy get into the bed.

"Thanks." He said quietly before he closed his eyes and drifted off into a much needed sleep.

* * *

Jude slept for a few hours while Lena sat next to him in bed and read a book. She smiled when the boy began to stir and placed her book on the table beside her. "Hi, honey!" She said quietly as he opened his eyes. "Feeling better?" She asked.

Jude yawned before smiling up at Lena. "Yeah. Thanks."

Lena smiled back and used the back of her hand to check his temperature. "Still a slight fever." She determined "But you're feeling better?" She asked and he nodded.

Lena sighed and nodded. She herself hadn't been able to rest and could feel her mental exhaustion, but she didn't want Jude to feel awkward just sitting in her bed.

"Are you ok?" The small voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

"What?" She asked as she looked down at the boy.

"You look sad." He said simply.

Lena smiled and rested her head down on the pillows, facing the young boy, as he did the same thing.

"I'm ok, sweetie." She started, but when he looked at her with such interest and care, she decided to tell him the truth. "I miss Frankie." She whispered.

Jude nodded his head and looked into his mother's eyes. "I do too." He whispered back.

Lena smiled at the boy's wisdom and ruffled his hair. "Anything else you want to talk to me about?" She asked when she saw a look in his eyes. A look that was of confusion and uneasiness.

Jude bit his bottom lip, as if he was deciding whether or not to continue talking.

"You can tell me anything, baby." Lena reminded him.

"It's not fair." He whispered and Lena moved closer so she could hear.

"What's not fair?" She asked as she lightly traced random patterns on his arm.

"Why did she have to die? It's not fair." He started. "She didn't even get to try. She didn't do anything wrong. Why did she die when she didn't even get to live?" His voice quickened and a tear fell from his eye.

Lena decided that she would let the boy continue before she spoke.

"I didn't even know her and I miss her." He said quietly before more tears fell. "I never got to know either of them." He choked out.

"Oh, honey." Lena said as she realized this was more than just Frankie. It was about his mother as well. She reached out and pulled him closer to her and let him cry. It was rare that Jude talked about his mother, and she knew he had some things that needed to be said. She wondered if anyone had really talked with him about his mother's passing. As she placed a kiss on his head she continued the conversation. "Can you talk to me about her?" She asked.

"I don't know! It's not fair!" His voice heightened. "It's not fair! I never even got to know her. I don't remember anything!" Lena could feel him begin to shake while crying.

"Have you and Callie ever talked about her?" She asked gently, hoping to calm him down.

Lena felt him shake his head and she sighed. "She doesn't like to talk about her." He whispered.

Lena made a mental note to talk to Callie about this. She knew the girl had trouble discussing difficult topics, but she had no idea how badly it was affecting Jude.

"You know what?" She asked after Jude had better composed himself.

"What?" He sniffled.

"I know how you feel. I never got to know Frankie. And it must be twice as hard for you because there are two people you didn't get a fair amount of time with. But it's ok to talk about them." She reminded him and he let out another small sob. "It really is. It's actually good." She said and then thought out loud. "I haven't been doing a very good job of talking about Frankie." Lena turned the boy towards her and looked into his eyes. "Maybe we can work on this together." She suggested. as she wiped a tear that had fallen from her own eye.

Jude looked at Lena with questioning eyes. "But I don't know what to even talk about." He confessed.

"You know, I don't really know either. But we can figure it out together." She replied honestly.

This time, Jude didn't respond.

"You think we can do that?" She asked as she used a finger to lift the boy's fallen gaze.

Finally, he looked up at Lena and nodded his head.

Lena smiled sadly at him and kissed his temple.

The two sat in silence before Jude quietly spoke. "I'm sorry you never got to meet Frankie. It's not fair."

"You're right, baby. It's not fair. A lot of things aren't fair. But you know what is fair?" She asked and Jude looked up at her with questioning eyes. "That I found you. And that you are part of my life now. I can't imagine my life without you." She whispered as she inhaled and shook the tears away.

Jude snuggled into Lena and sniffled. "I can't imagine my life without you, either. You're the best thing that has happened to me and Callie since my mom died."

Lena smiled. "I love you, my baby."

"I love you too, mama."


	7. I'm Listening

**I'm working on You are Safe, You are Loved but I figured I would give you this little one shot while you wait!**

**Jesus and Callie have a heart-to-heart. 3**

* * *

"Callie! Wait. Please." Lena began to follow the teen out of her room.

Callie stopped, knowing she should obey the woman, but she turned around and quickly wiped away the tears that were threatening to spill over. "I promise I'm ok, Lena." She said as confidently as possible, hoping to leave it at that.

"Sweetie." Lena began again before Callie held up her hands. "Please. I'm fine. I just need to go for a walk." Callie said as she turned to continue her previous journey down the stairs.

"Ok." Lena said as she bit her bottom lip. Before Callie could disappear down the stairs, she called out after her. "Please bring your phone." After hearing a distant response, she whispered "I love you".

Lena waited until she heard the front door shut, indicating that Callie had left the house before she allowed a sob to escape from her lips. She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes, wondering how she would get Callie to open up to her. Deep down she knew that the girl needed to vocalize and process her thoughts and feelings, but it didn't seem like the teen wanted to. _Or maybe she doesn't know how._ Lena thought to herself as she remained standing in the hallway.

Suddenly, the sound of a door opening caused Lena to gather her composure and turn her head towards Jesus who had been in his room.

"Hi, honey." She said, trying to mask her feelings for the sake of her child.

Jesus looked at his mother with such caring eyes. "What happened with Callie? Is she alright?" He asked.

Lena nodded quickly, "Yeah. She's just going for a walk. Needed some space. She'll be fine."

"Are you fine?" He asked, this time directing the question to Lena.

The mother looked up at her son with such love. He was always the one getting into trouble, forgetting to do his homework, and creating messes, but it amazed her how gentle and compassionate her middle son truly was. "I wish I could help her." Lena finally admitted with a small smile.

Jesus crinkled his forehead in confusion. "What do you mean? You've helped her so much. Remember how she was when she first got here?" Jesus smiled as the both thought back to that first night.

"Yeah. But that was mostly outer stuff that just took time. She is dealing with a lot of stuff internally and I don't know how to help her." Lena said out loud, not revealing too much personal information to her son.

Jesus nodded. "Mariana and I went through stuff like that too." He smiled. "And we turned out pretty good!"

Lena smiled and cupped her hand to his face. "You sure did, baby."

Jesus smiled back and looked at his phone to see the time. "I think I'm gonna go walk with Callie. Keep her company." He stated with a look that told his mom that he would keep an eye out for her.

Lena's heart swelled and she nodded. "Thank you"

* * *

"Hey Callie! Callie! Wait up!" Jesus yelled from the end of the driveway. Luckily, the teen hadn't gotten too far, on account of thoughts wondering, causing her pace to slow.

Callie turned around with a confused look. "Jesus?" She asked as the boy jogged towards her. "What are you doing?" She asked when he reached her.

"Mind if I join you?" He asked casually as they began to walk together down the sidewalk.

Callie looked at him again before sighing. "Sure. That's fine."

The two walked in silence before Callie questioned Jesus. "Did Lena send you out here to walk with me?"

The boy didn't skip a beat when he replied. "No. I wanted to walk. Catch up with you. Ya know. I mean I could be inside playing video games, so she was totally fine when I told her I wanted to walk with you." He joked, causing Callie to smile.

They continued to walk towards no particular destination in silence.

"But ya know, if you wanted to talk to me about anything, I'm a good listener." Jesus offered.

Callie scoffed at the thought. "Oh really? I'd like to hear what Stef and Lena would say to that statement." She teased.

"It's called selective hearing." Jesus began to explain. "And I tend to selectively not hear them" he finished with a grin.

Callie giggled and nudged him with her shoulder. "Ohh. Now I've got some good blackmail." She stated.

Jesus laughed. "It's not blackmail when they know it too!" He replied.

Callie smiled back.

Their conversation ended once more and they went back to walking in silence.

Callie tried to focus on just walking, but her head was filled with so many thoughts that she couldn't keep them all straight.

"So. Like I said." Jesus began again. "I'm here to listen."

Callie didn't respond at first. She knew she could trust Jesus and that he was only trying to help, but she feared that if she opened her mouth, tears would follow her words and she hated crying in front of people.

"It's stupid." Callie started. She looked over at Jesus, but he didn't respond, indicating that he was still listening. Callie exhaled. "I have a picture of Jude, my mom, and me from when Jude was born." She began as they turned a corner. "It's really the only good picture I have of the three of us." She continued, finding some strength within herself to do so. "And yesterday, when I came home, I didn't realize it had fallen off of my nightstand and into the garbage next to my bed." Callie began to tear up at the thought and her voice hitched. "Ummm. And I threw some other stuff in there. On top of it." She stopped walking for a moment and closed her eyes, trying with every fiber in her being to not cry.

Jesus gently put his arm around her shoulders and encouraged her to keep going.

"I was looking for it today, and when I couldn't find it anywhere on my floor or in a drawer, I emptied out my trashcan. And..." tears began to fall from the brunette's eyes. "And It's ruined." She choked out with a sob. "My only picture of us is ruined. And I..." She bit her lip in an effort to stop her sobs. "I.. That's all I had of her. I mean I know I have my necklace," she said as she played with the chain around her neck. "But this was the only picture." She finished before quickly wiping away at the tears.

Jesus sighed as they turned another corner, which had caused them to begin their journey back to the house. He waited for a moment to speak, allowing Callie to collect her thoughts and have some time for herself. Once he felt her begin to relax, he let his hand drop from her shoulder and he turned to smile at her.

Callie looked back at him and gave him a look. "I told you it was stupid." She mumbled as she turned back forward to see where she was walking.

"I don't think it's stupid." Jesus finally spoke and Callie looked at him and shrugged her shoulders. "Really." He continued as they turned another corner. "But you know what I do think is stupid?" He asked, causing Callie to become interested in his answer and turning to look at him.

"What?" She asked hesitantly.

"You thinking that is all you have of her." He stated simply and looked forward, giving Callie time to process what he said.

"Oh." Callie responded and dropped her head.

"What does that picture say about her?" He asked and Callie looked at him with a questioning look. "I mean does it show who she really was? To you?" He rephrased.

Callie sighed, seeing where he was going with his point. "No. I guess not. But I don't have a single picture of the three of us now. It was something special. I'm beginning to forget what she looked like and that scares me." Callie responded, tears forming once more.

"Remember when Mariana dyed her hair blonde?" Jesus asked and Callie smiled slightly at the event.

"Yeah. So?"

"So she looked different, but she was still the same Mariana, right?" He asked.

"Yeah. I guess she was." Callie confessed.

The two made it back to the house and before Callie could walk up the front steps, Jesus put his arm around her and sat both of them down on the stairs. "What I'm trying to say is that people change how they look all of the time. And it doesn't really matter if you can't remember her physical look. What matters is that you remember her personality, the reasons why you love her and what she did for you and Jude. Those are the memories that count." He explained. "And I guarantee you, you can't find those in a single picture."

Tears pooled in Callie's eyes as she leaned her head onto Jesus' shoulder. "She was an amazing mom." She finally whispered before letting out a sob.

Jesus smiled and wrapped the teen into his arms. His only response was him saying "I'm listening."


	8. Car Accident: Part 1

**Thanks for the suggestion for this from two different readers!**

**This will be a 2-part story, so don't fret! **

**Jude, Mariana, and Callie get into a car accident.**

* * *

"Really, Mariana? You just went to the mall yesterday." Stef questioned as the 15-year-old followed her around the kitchen.

"Mom. I just was going to meet up with some girls there and look." She informed her mother before folding her hands and giving the blonde a pleading look. "Please? I won't stay out late."

"Mariana, love I don't have time right now to drive you. I'm sorry, my love next time I need a little more notice before, ok?" Stef responded, stopping to look at her daughter who looked defeated.

At the sound of footsteps coming down the steps, and Callie emerging from the stairway, Mariana's face lit up once more and she exclaimed, "What about Callie? She her her license! Can we borrow the car?" She exclaimed as she pleaded to both her mother and the teen who looked uneasily at the ground.

"Babe, Callie just got her license two months ago. And I'm sure she doesn't wanna be driving you all over town on her Friday night." Stef answered for Callie.

"But it's literally a 10 minute drive" Mariana pointed out. "Ohh! And Cal! You can look and see if they have that new camera lens you were looking at." Mariana reminded her and Callie's head snapped upon interest.

"What camera lens?" Stef asked, resting her outstretched hand on the table and leaning on it slightly.

"Oh" Callie began to respond. "It's nothing really. I was just looking at some equipment." She quickly stated. "But no yeah I can take her, it's fine. I don't mind." She continued quickly and looked towards Mariana who was clapping her hands excitedly.

"Yay! Thanks, Cal!" She said and skipped over to the stairs. "I'm gonna grab my stuff." She said before disappearing up the stairs.

Callie stood in the kitchen with slight awkwardness. She had been with the Adams Foster family for a while now, but when it was just her and one of the moms, she always got just a little uneasy.

"You sure you're ok with this, love?" Stef asked as she walked over to the girl who tried to look busy by looking at her phone.

Callie looked up quickly and smiled. "Oh yeah. It's totally fine."

"You know how Mariana can push." Stef stated as she rested a gentle hand on Callie's shoulder. "You don't have to take her just because she asked."

"I know." Callie nodded and put her phone away. "I want to go too." She stated, hoping that it would be enough for Stef to drop the conversation.

The older woman nodded and lightly squeezed the girl's arm as she let go and walked back towards the oven. "Alright, my love. But I'm making dinner tonight so please be home by 8."

Callie gave her a look of disbelief. "You're making dinner?"

Stef turned around and dramatically put her hand over her heart and gasped. "Are you implying that I can't cook?" She asked.

Callie smirked as she headed towards the front door to grab her wallet. "It's not implying if we both know it's true."

Stef grabbed the hand towel next to her and balled it up before throwing it at Callie who had by then made it to the bottom of the stairs. "I'm making pizza! Does that work for you, your royal heinous?"

"Pizza?" Jesus' voice could be heard from the top of the stairs. "What? Is mom in charge of dinner tonight?" He asked as he hurried down the stairs only to be met with a faked look of hurt on Stef's face.

"Well maybe you all can have dog food tonight instead." She replied as Callie walked back into the room with her wallet.

"I mean those options are pretty equal" Jesus said quickly before smiling and walking over to Stef and hugging her. "Just kidding, mom." He said and kissed her on the cheek.

She rolled her eyes but hugged him back. "Yeah, yeah. Sure." She replied in a joking tone before looking over at Callie who was waiting next to the kitchen table, clearly wanting to ask something, but not sure how.

"Whatcha need, sweets?" Stef asked as Jesus pulled away from her and walked into the living room to play video games.

"Uhhh." Callie stared down at her shoes for a moment before looking up. "Can I please borrow your keys?" She asked quietly, feeling suddenly very uncomfortable.

Stef smiled and nodded before going to find her purse. "Of course, my love." She said as she fished them out of the bag and handed them to the teen. "And thank you again for taking little Miss Diva" Stef said as she gave the brunette a quick hug.

Callie smiled and nodded, looking at the keys and the numerous keychains that accompanied them. Many were from different locations, some cards for grocery stores, and a few with the kids' names on it. Callie smiled at the personalized keychain and thought she could find something special for Stef and Lena to add to their keychains that was from her. Now she definitely wanted to go shopping.

"Are you going somewhere?" A small voice interrupted Callie's thoughts as she pulled herself away from the keychain and looked over at Jude who had walked into the kitchen on his way to play video games with Jesus.

"I'm just taking Mariana to the store. Wanna come?" She asked almost instantly before her eyes widened and she looked over at Stef, realizing that she hadn't even asked for permission. "I mean..." She began, but Stef knew the train of thought going through her head and stopped her.

"That sounds like fun, Jude!" She soothed the girl's fear.

Callie smiled and looked back at her younger brother. "Gotta decide quick before Mariana gets back down here." She slightly teased.

"Ok!" Jude said with a smile and a nod before walking towards the closet for his shoes and jacket.

"Okaaaayyy!" Mariana sang as she ran down the stairs.

Stef rolled her eyes with a laugh at the dramatics of her daughter and looked over at Callie. "Please be safe and text me when you get there and when you're coming home, yes?"

Callie nodded. "Ok. I will."

Mariana ran into the kitchen and grabbed Callie by the arm. "Come on! Let's go!" She said as she pulled the older teen

Callie laughed. "Jude is coming with us." She informed.

"Oh! Judicorn! Yay!" Stef could hear Mariana begin to discuss with Jude what she was going to buy at the store.

"Hey, little one I thought you said you were just gonna look!" Stef called out.

"Yeah. That's what Im doing!" She called back before the front door opened and closed, drowning out their voices.

Stef walked over to the front door and crossed her arms over her chest as she looked out the window.

"You know she's gonna buy something, right?" Jesus asked from the couch, not looking up from his video game.

Stef chuckled and nodded her head. "Yup. That's Miss Thing." She agreed before turning to go check back on the pizza.

* * *

"We had a lot of fun." Jude concluded as he and Callie walked around the mall together. He had just finished telling his sister about one of his friend's recent birthday parties. Callie smiled with pride. She was so happy to see that Jude was fitting so well into his new adopted family and lifestyle.

"That's great, bud!" Callie exclaimed as she clutched the small bag, which contained the keychains she had bought for her foster moms. She was extremely nervous about picking the right ones, but after a half hour of comparing, she finally picked out two that she liked and was satisfied.

"Uhh where did Mariana say she was going?" Callie asked as she looked at her phone to check the time.

"I dono. She said she was meeting up with Hayley I think... I don't remember." He said with a sigh.

"It's ok, bud." Callie said, ruffling his hair before dialing the teen's number. "I'll call her."

On the 3rd ring, Mariana picked up and greeted Callie, "Hey! What's up?" She asked.

"Uh hey. I hate to break up your shopping trip, but it's 7:30 and we need to be home by 8." Callie said, twirling her hair around her finger anxiously. She absolutely did not want to get in trouble so soon after getting her license.

"It's only a 10 minute drive!" Mariana stated. She was in one of the stores with a group of girls from the dance team and it was hard enough that she wasn't fitting in, but if she left early, they would think she didn't want to be with them, which she so desperately did.

"Ok." Callie said, chewing on her lip. She didn't want to argue with Mariana, so she came up with a compromise. "How about Jude and I go get the car and we'll meet you at the entrance we came in? In 15 minutes?"

Mariana sighed and nodded her head before responding. "Alright. Thanks, Ca." She said honestly as she hung up the phone and put a fake annoyed look on as she walked back over to the girls. "Uhhh my stupid brother wants to go home and I have to leave in like 10 minutes." She tried to sound like it was a huge hassle.

One of the girls looked at her and rolled her eyes. "This is why you need a boyfriend. So he can take you places." She said as she laughed at the brunette and walked away.

Mariana sighed and brushed off the comment, putting a fake smile on her face and continued to follow the group.

* * *

20 minutes later, Callie felt her heart begin to quicken its pace as Mariana still hadn't come out of the mall. She looked over her shoulder at Jude who was in the backseat and smiled, trying not to worry him. "I'm gonna give her a call." She said as she pulled out her phone and dialed Mariana's number again. When it went to voicemail, Callie groaned and sent the girl a message instead telling her to hurry up of they were going to be late.

"I could go in and look for her." Jude offered, knowing Callie had to stay in the car, as it was pulled over on the shoulder with its hazards on.

"No." Callie shook her head. She didn't trust Jude walking around the mall alone. "It's fine. She told me she would be here." She said, putting more faith in the teen than she really believed deep down.

Finally, 3 minutes later, Mariana ran out of the mall and looked around for a few seconds before she spotted the car. She walked quickly over and opened the passenger seat door. "I'm so sorry!" She exclaimed as she quickly shut the door and put her seatbelt on. Callie checked the time and noted that she had 7 minutes to get back. She put the car in drive and sped off.

The car ride was quiet- neither girl wanted to talk about why Mariana was late, and Jude was content with the silence.

As Callie approached a light, she increased her speed, hoping to catch it before it turned yellow.

"Uhhh!" Mariana groaned as she looked down at her phone and closed her eyes.

Callie looked over at the girl for a moment in order to see what was wrong. Before she could open her mouth, Jude's voice flooded the car. "Callie! Watch out!"

* * *

"Brandon! Shake a leg! Come on!" Stef called up to her oldest son as she and Jesus waited in the kitchen so they could eat.

"What time is mom getting home?" Jesus asked as he finished setting the table and sat down.

When he didn't hear his mother answer, Jesus looked over at Stef and saw her checking her phone. "Mom?" He asked again.

Stef looked up from her phone with a confused look. "Sorry, my love. What did you say?"

Jesus cocked his head. "I was just asking when mom was coming home. What's wrong?"

Stef smiled at her son and walked over to the table. "Nothing, my sweet boy." She assured him as she kissed his forehead. "And she should be back by 9." She answered as she sat down at the table, still looking at her phone.

"Ok hello! I'm not stupid, mom. Why do you keep checking your phone?" Jesus asked with curiosity.

Stef sighed and looked up again. "It's almost 8:15 and Mari, Callie and Jude still aren't back from the mall. I told them to be back by 8." She explained.

"Mariana probably lost track of time." He stated simply.

"And Callie and Jude?" Stef responded.

Jesus shrugged as he grabbed for a piece of pizza before Stef slapped his hand away. "Woah. Rude." He said in a half-joking manner. "I'm sure it's fine. I;m sure it has something to do with those stupid dance girls Mariana hangs out with." He mumbled.

"Hey now! Young man. That isn't nice." Stef chastised.

Before Jesus could respond, Stef's phone began to ring. She eagerly grabbed it and looked at the number. She exhaled when she saw Callie's name pop up on the screen and held up her pointer finger to Jesus asking him to wait while she took the call.

"Callie?" She asked.

"Stef?"

The blonde could sense something was off right away at the sound of the teen's voice. "Callie, sweetie? What's wrong?" Stef asked anxiously.

"Ummm" The girl's voice hitched as she tried to swallow the lump in her throat.

"Callie?" Stef said in a more stern voice. She could feel the panic begin to bubble in her throat. "Talk to me."

By this time, Brandon had come down the stairs and both boys were looking at their mother with equally concerned looks.

"I'm so sorry." Callie mustered out with a sob.

Stef turned to the boys and lifted the phone from her mouth just enough so she could talk to them. "One of you. Gimmie your phone." She demanded and Jesus dug his out of his pocket and handed it to the blonde cop.

Stef silently thanked him before turning it on and looking for the find my phone app. She brought her phone back to her mouth and began to speak to the girl once more. "Callie. Where are you?" She asked, even though she would find out momentarily from the app.

Stef heard faint sirens and knew something bad had happened. "Callie! Where are Mariana and Jude?" Her voice broke as she called out once more.

"I'm sorry." was all the girl could say before a man's voice began talking.

"I'm coming, baby. Keep calm for me, ok?" Stef asked as she grabbed her keys and jacket. "Callie answer me!" She said, more for her sanity than anything else.

"Ok." She whispered.

Unknowingly, the boys had followed their mother out to the car and Brandon proceeded to grab the keys from his shaking mother's hand. She looked at him with question and then nodded when he indicated that he would drive. Stef got into the passenger's seat and Jesus climbed in the back.

"You still there?" Stef asked as she gave Brandon Jesus' phone, which had the location of Callie's phone on it. They were less than 10 minutes away and Brandon began to drive as Stef continued to talk to the teen.

"I'm sorry." Callie said once more, causing Stef only more panic.

"Baby. What happened? Whatever it is, it's gonna be ok." She tried to soothe the girl's anxiety but Callie only answered with a quiet "I have to go."

"No! Callie! Stay on the phone with me! Just until I get there. I'm on my way now." Stef racked her brain with ideas to talk to the girl about to keep her on the phone. "Where are Mariana and Jude?" She asked, trying not to let her fear escape through her tone of voice.

"Jude?" Callie responded almost as if she was distracted.

"Callie. Stay with me." Stef said as she looked over at Brandon who was focused on the road. "Are Jude and Mariana ok?" She asked again.

"I'm so sorry."

Stef let out a sob. It was almost worse not knowing what was happening because her mind automatically went to the worse possible scenario. Before Stef could try and talk to Callie again, she noticed red and blue lights flashing ahead of her and she gasped when she saw an ambulance at the intersection of the next major light.

A police officer had stopped traffic coming from all directions and Brandon was only able to travel a few feet closer before he was forced to stop as well. Stef ripped off her seat belt and took off towards the lights and ambulance.

"Stef." A police officer stated as he saw his co-worker frantically running towards the scene.

The blonde pushed passed them as she spotted the car her kids had taken. She gasped as she saw the passenger's side and right back side crumpled and glass was shattered everywhere.

Stef ran to the car and sighed in relief when she saw Callie sitting on the ground next to the car. Her relief turned to confusion as she slowly approached the girl and crouched down next to her. "Callie?" She asked gently as she put a hand on the shaking girl who had her arms wrapped around her bent legs. She had blood on her shirt, but nothing looked too serious.

Callie looked up at the sound of Stef's voice and tears poured out as she shook her head and let it fall back down to her knees.

Stef kissed the girl on the head and turned to see Jesus and Brandon behind her. "Stay with her." She instructed as she rose from her crouched position and made her way to the ambulance where she saw a small boy on a stretcher. "Jude?" She called out and ran to the stretcher as they reached the ambulance.

She sighed in relief when she saw he was conscious. "Hi, baby." She said as she chocked on a sob. She smiled and smoothed his hair back, giving him a kiss on the forehead. "Are you ok? What hurts?" She asked as the paramedics gave the mother a minute to talk with her son.

"I'm ok." Jude said with a small smile. "Just my arm and shoulder hurts." He admitted. Stef nodded and kissed his forehead again. "Do you know where Mariana is?" Stef asked, exhaling as the anxiety filled her body once more.

Jude looked over at the car and then back at Stef. "She's still in the car." He almost whispered and Stef took a deep breath before turning back to the boy. "Ok, my sweet, sweet boy. I'm gonna go see how your sister is doing, alright?" She asked, trying to force out a smile.

Jude nodded and smiled back.

Stef ran her fingers through his brown hair a few more times before planting one final kiss on his cheek and turning towards the passenger's side of the car.

Once she reached the car, Stef swallowed and peered inside. "Mariana!" She called out as she saw her daughter motionless, her seatbelt still on.

"Ma'am I'm gonna need you to step back." One of the paramedics said as he held out his arm to stop her from coming any closer. The man slowly pushed Stef back until she was far enough away for them to bring in some tools in order to open the crumpled door.

In an attempt to keep herself calm, Stef looked away from her daughter and saw Brandon struggling to hold Jesus back from the opposite side of the car. She sighed in defeat as she walked around to them and put her hands on his face. "Jesus. Jesus look at me." She said in a calm manner. The boy didn't respond, and he was still breathing heavily, but he did quit struggling against his older brother. "Baby. She's gonna be ok. We've gotta let the paramedics take care of her. That's their job. They can help her the most right now." She explained as she rubbed away some tears that had fallen from her middle son's eyes.

Stef glansed down at Callie who was still huddled in a ball on the ground. She had begun to rock herself foreword and backward and Stef could see her struggling to breathe at a normal pace. She let out another sob as she reached for her phone and handed it to Brandon, who had by then let go of Jesus. "Call mama, please." She said desperately. She knew she couldn't handle all of her kids on her own.

Brandon smiled sadly. "Already did. She's leaving her meeting right now and said she would be here in less than 5 minutes. The school is close by." He informed her and Stef reached out to hug her oldest son. "Thank you, baby."

Once the loud sound of the tools opening up the car door halted, all three looked over at the car and saw a group of paramedics reaching in to gather Mariana out of the seat and onto another gurney from a second ambulance who had made its way to the scene shortly after the first one. Before she could take a step towards Mariana, she heard a voice behind her that instantly relieved the smallest part of her worries.

"Stef?" Lena called out as she pushed her way through the police officers and reached her two oldest sons and her wife. "What happened?" She asked as she looked around, taking in the scene in front of her.

"I'm not sure of the details, but I need you to go with Mariana." She said as she pointed to the second ambulance. "They just got her out of the car and I don't know how she is." She explained.

Lena nodded and gave her wife a quick kiss before making her way over to the ambulance. She knew she would hear the rest of the story later, but for now, she needed to be with her daughter.

Stef watched for a moment as Lena climbed into the ambulance and turned his attention back to her boys. She shifted her focus from Callie to Jude and then to her oldest sons in front of her. After some consideration, she instructed the boys to go with Jude in the ambulance. She figured she should be the one to find out what happened with Callie, and she knew Jude wasn't in any immediate danger.

Both boys looked at one another and nodded as they made their way towards their youngest brother. Stef smiled as she saw them cracking jokes, making the boy giggle.

With another deep breath, she walked over to Callie and crouched down next to her, as she had done earlier. "How you doing, my love?" She asked as she tried to read the girl's body language.

Callie didn't respond, so Stef tried to lift her head up so she could at least see the girl's eyes. "Baby, please look at me." Stef said with deep concern in her voice. Callie shook her head and let out a sob. Sighing, Stef looked at the ground next to the girl and carefully sat down. She pulled the shaking girl into her arms and held her for a few moments. She kissed the side of the girl's head a few times before starting to talk once more. By then, both ambulances had left and the police were beginning to organize the clean up of the derby.

"How about we get you up and into the car so we can meet everyone at the hospital?" Stef asked, though it was more of an order than a question. When Callie again didn't answer her, she stood up and reached down to help the girl one her feet. The teen kept her gaze down and allowed Stef to guide her over to one of the police cars, which was only a few feet away.

"Hey Anderson. Can you drop us off at the hospital please?" Stef asked her co-worker before opening up the back door and almost pushing Callie into the car. She talked with the police officer for a moment more before sliding in next to the teen in the back seat and shutting the door behind her. Stef reached over to buckle herself in and sighed sadly as she saw Callie had moved over as far away from Stef as possible and buckled herself in as well, resting her head on the cool window.

The officer Stef had talked to got into the driver's seat and started the car. He looked back at Stef and nodded. When she returned the nod, he began to drive to the hospital.

* * *

It didn't take long for them to reach their destination and they were dropped off at the emergency room entrance. Once again, Callie didn't move on her own, so Stef had to get out herself, walk around the car to the other side, and physically take the girl out of the car. "Come on, my love." She said as she led the teen towards the doors. Suddenly, Stef felt Callie stop walking and her body began to fall towards the floor. "Callie!" She called out as she held onto the girl who had passed out suddenly. "Anderson! I need a stretcher!" She frantically yelled as she slowly settled herself and her daughter to the ground.

**Part 2 coming soon! **


	9. Car Accident: Part 2

**Thank you so much for the positive remarks! Here is part 2!**

Callie's head throbbed. She tried to will the pain from her entire body away, but the spinning in her head made it difficult to concentrate. Her eyelids felt like bricks cemented shut. She tried to pry them open, but they hardly moved at all. "Mmmm" She groaned, trying to create an audible word. Her heartbeat began to quicken as she struggled to make sense of what was going on. _Help me! Someone help!_ She screamed to herself.

"Callie!" Stef called out when she heard the slight mumble of the girl who was now on a stretcher and being taken into the ER. Stef jogged next to her as the doctors rolled her into an examination room. "Callie, sweetie I'm right here. You're alright." Stef called out, unaware if the girl would even hear her.

"Ma'am. What happened?" One of the doctors asked as he began to check the teen's vitals.

"Sh.. she was in a car accident." Stef stammered, never looking away from Callie.

"Was she checked by the paramedics?" He asked, continuing his work.

Stef thought back and shook her head. "Uhh I dono. She I mean I got there after it happened and found her sitting next to the car. Two of my other kids were in the car as well so I went to check on them." Stef rambled as she tried to remember all the details.

"Has she had any past severe medical history?" He asked before instructing the nurses to gather what he needed to continue.

"Mmmm" Callie's voice stopped Stef and the mother grabbed the girl's hand and held it gently in her own.

"Callie, love. You're ok." She told the girl as she rubbed soothing circles on the back of her hand.

When Callie's eyes began to flutter slightly, both the doctor and Stef knew she was waking up.

"Hi, Callie! My name is Doctor Kippler" The doctor said with a smile as he took out his flashlight and began to shine it around her face, using his finger to open her eyes one at a time.

Callie groaned at the light and tried to close her eyes again. The light was making her head throb.

"Hey, sweetie I just need you to open your eyes for me really quick, ok?" He asked as she struggled to move away from the invading doctor's reach.

When Callie shrugged away again, Stef spoke up. "Callie, my love. You need to open your eyes for just a moment so the doctor can check them."

Slowly, the teen allowed her eyes to open and Dr. Kippler quickly flashed his light from one eye to the other.

"Thank you, sweetie. You can close your eyes." Dr. Kippler said gently before looking to one of the nurses. "Order a CAT scan." He said before turning to a worried Stef. "Just to make sure. She does have a concussion, but the adrenaline from the crash could have hidden her injuries up until now." He explained and Stef nodded in understanding. "We just want to check everything out so we're sure."

Stef nodded again and the door opened revealing another nurse.

"We can take her." She informed the doctor before he nodded and turned to Callie who was trying to breathe through the pain she felt throughout her body.

"Alright, sweetie. My friend Amanda is going to take you to get some quick tests done." He told the teen before moving over towards Stef and guiding both of them out of the way of the moving stretcher.

"Nothing to be too concerned about right now." Dr. Kippler said, trying to relieve the worry in the mother's eyes.

Stef nodded her head before informing the doctor of some information. "She is my foster daughter, so I don't know much of her medical history."

Doctor Kippler smiled sadly and nodded his head in response.

"My wife is here and she might have a few more details that could help." Stef thought out loud as she reached into her pocket for her phone.

As the adults talked, Callie was being prepared to get wheeled out to get her CAT scan.

"Ok, sweetie." Amanda said with a smile, even though the girl's eyes were closed.

At the first jolt of movement, Callie's eyes sprung open and she looked around frantically.

"You're ok." Amanda assured the girl as she stopped for a moment to place a gentle hand on the girl's shoulder. At the touch, Callie pushed herself away from the nurse, causing a severe spinning to take over her head. She grabbed her head and winced in pain.

"Callie!" Stef called out. She watched helplessly as the girl held her head and tried desperately to force back tears. Stef crouched down next to the teen and tilted her head to try and capture the eyes of the teen. "Sweetie." Stef gently called out.

"I have to take her down." Amanda said softly, with an apologetic tone.

Stef nodded and leaned in before whispering, "I love you," then stood up.

"I'm gonna start moving again, Callie." Amanda said quietly. "I promise to go slow." As she began to wheel the girl out, she only stopped momentarily when she heard the girl inhale sharply and let a sob out, but figured the faster she could get to the scan, the better, and continued out of the room.

"Could you tell me where my son is?" Stef asked, suddenly anxious that Brandon and Jesus were with him alone.

Dr. Kippler nodded as he checked Callie's chart one more time.

"Could you also take me to my daughter's room? My wife is there with her, and maybe then she can talk with you about Callie's medical history." Stef asked, rubbing her eyes with her hands.

"Let me grab their charts. What are their names?"

"Jude and Mariana Adams Foster" Stef responded as she followed the doctor out towards a nurse's station.

* * *

"You're ok, my love." Lena cooed as she rocked Mariana in her arms.

When Lena had gotten into the ambulance at the intersection, Mariana was just gaining consciousness. She began sobbing from fear and pain and tried to claw Lena up onto the stretcher with her. The paramedics insisted that the teen be on the stretcher alone, so Mariana settled for holding Lena's hand the entire ride. They checked her vitals, but the only injury they detected were several cuts and bruises on her face and arms.

Once they got her into a room and closed the door for privacy, she pulled Lena onto the stretcher with her and buried herself into the older woman's chest. She had Lena's shirt in a death grip and wouldn't let any of the doctors come near her. Lena had tried unsuccessfully to let the doctor check her for other injuries, and after a half hour of pleading, the doctor said he would come back in a few minutes, hopefully giving the girl some time to settle down a little.

Lena and Mariana had been in the room alone for almost 10 minutes. Hating to see her daughter in such a frightened state, she simply ran her fingers through the girl's hair and gently rocked her, mindful of her injuries. The mother sighed in relief when she felt the girl's breathing even out and she felt her grip loosen on her shirt. Even so, Lena continued to whisper soothing words to her daughter.

A slight knock at the door grabbed Lena's attention and she smiled when she saw her wife follow a doctor into the room.

"I'll give you a few minutes." Dr. Kippler said with a small smile before exiting the room and closing the door behind him.

"Hi, my loves." Stef said softly, as she walked over to her wife and daughter. Her heart broke as she noted how close Mariana was to Lena and how exhausted Lena looked. She reached over to her daughter, ran her hand through the girl's dark hair and kissed her several times on the temple. Then she focused on her wife.

"What did they say?" She asked as she winced at the sight of the bruises and cuts on the girl's arms.

Lena shook her head while exhaling. "I don't know yet. They checked vitals and what they could in the ambulance, but once we got in the room, she wouldn't let anyone come near her." Lena looked down at the girl for a moment before continuing. "The doctor left after a half hour of trying, and she fell asleep about 10 minutes ago." Lena quickly explained.

Stef's eyes lingered over her daughter's battered skin before sniffing slightly, she knew she needed to discuss Callie with her, though she wish it wasn't while she was with their daughter.

"What happened?" Lena asked. All Brandon had told her on the phone was that Callie, Mariana and Jude had gotten in a car crash. Once she arrived on the scene, she went right to Mariana and the ambulance left. She hated being in the dark about her kids.

Stef sighed deeply and sat down in a chair that was positioned next to her wife and daughter. "I'm not sure about the details of the crash, but Jude broke his arm." She explained. When Lena's face showed signs of deep fear, Stef put a hand on her wife's arm and stroked it gently. "He's ok, my love. I just went to see him and Brandon and Jesus are with him. He got a blue cast and the boys are writing all over it as we speak." Stef said with a smile as she thought back to how thankful she was that Brandon and Jesus had been there to be with Jude. "When I left, Brandon was going to get the three of them some food. They are going to watch TV until we can take them home." Stef explained.

"Ok." Lena said, sighing in relief that the boy seemed to be doing alright.

"What about Callie?" Lena asked.

"Well. Kinda like this one" Stef started before looking at Mariana, "I'm not entirely sure." Lena crinkled her forehead in confusion. "What do you mean?" She asked, halting to settle the girl in her arms who had moved slightly and hit her bruised arm slightly.

Stef waited until Mariana was situated once more before answering her wife's question. "I took her with me in Anderson's car to the hospital. She didn't seem to be hurt, just afraid." Stef recalled the look un the girl's eyes when they got into the police car. "But when we got to the hospital, she passed out, out of no where!" Stef exclaimed.

"What?"

"They just took her down for a CAT scan."

"A CAT scan?!" Lena gasped as her free hand flew to her heart.

"Dr. Kippler said it's just for precaution." Stef said as she pushed back her emotions. "He said she has a concussion, but he wanted to be sure."

Lena nodded her head as a tear fell.

"Baby." Stef stated as she got up from the chair and put a hand on her wife's face. "It's gonna be ok." Stef soothed the woman.

"Stef! How can it be ok?" Lena asked, her voice louder than she intended, causing Mariana to stir again.

Lena took a breath before looking down at the girl waking up in her arms. "Hi, baby." She said softly.

Mariana groaned as she lifted her hand to rub the sleep from her eyes. When she made contact with her bruise, she yelped slightly.

"Careful, sweetie." Stef said gently.

It took the girl a few seconds to remember where she was before her face fell. "Mama?!"

"Shhhh, baby. I'm right here." Lena said as she wrapped her arms back around the girl.

"I'm gonna go get the doctor." Stef said with a small smile before getting up and kissing her daughter in the head.

Mariana turned to look up at her mother. "Mama. Are Callie and Jude ok?" She asked.

Lena smiled. "They're gonna be alright, baby." She responded. "But how about now we focus on you?" She asked in more of a statement form. "Can you tell me what hurts?" She asked, knowing it would be a question the doctor would be asking.

Before the girl could answer, a doctor entered the room, followed by Doctor Kippler, and Stef.

"My love, Mama needs to go with Doctor Kippler for just a little bit." She started and when she saw the panic strike her face, she quickly continued. "I'm gonna be here with you." She said, trying to sooth the fears.

When Mariana looked up at Lena with tears in her eyes, Stef tried a humor approach. "What? I'm not good enough for my little diva?" She asked, faking a tone with a slight smile. "I mean I know I didn't have a chance to shower today, but I think I smell alright." She said as she lifted her arm and held it to Lena for her to check.

"Oh Stef!" Lena said with a slightly disgusted look, but smiled when she saw Mariana roll her eyes and chuckle slightly.

"Ok, ok, mom. Just don't do that again." The teen said with a smile.

Stef stuck her tongue out at the girl before looking at her wife, who gave a look of wanting to know why she needed to go with the other doctor.

"He needs some information on Callie's medical history and I was hoping your memory was better than mine." Stef said.

Lena laughed slightly. "Honey, everyone's memory is better than yours." She stated as she looked down at her daughter. "Alright, my baby girl. I'll be back in a little bit."

Planting a kiss on her forehead, she slipped off of the bed, gave Stef a quick kiss before following the doctor out of the room.

Stef watched the door close before turning to the other doctor in the room. "Hi. I'm Stef." She stuck out her hand and the doctor shook it. "I'm Doctor Hansen."

He turned to look at the teen who was looking away from both adults. "Hi, Mariana. You look like you're doing a little better." Dr. Hansen said as he grabbed her chart and made his way to the side she was facing. When she didn't respond, he continued. "Can you tell me what happened?"

When the girl shrugged, Stef stepped in. She sat on the edge of the stretcher and placed her hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Mari, love. Please talk to the doctor." She said in a soothing but stern voice.

"Some stupid guy hit us." Mariana said with no emotion.

Before she could continue, the door burst open and Jesus ran in, followed quickly by Brandon, Lena and Jude entered the room shortly after.

"Jesus!?" Stef called out in question as the boy ran over to his twin and dropped to his knees beside her. "Are you ok?" He asked, a tear falling down his cheek.

"Jesus!" Lena called to her son as she and Jude walked into the room. "I'm sorry." Lena apologized when she saw Dr. Hansen. "He insisted on seeing her." She explained as she ushered Jude further into the room.

"How's the arm, baby?" Stef asked as she opened her arms and gave Jude a gentle hug.

The boy shrugged his shoulders and yawned. "It's fine." He said. "Where's Callie?" He suddenly asked, noticing she wasn't in the room with the rest of his family.

"Uhh baby. He's getting some tests done. I was actually on my way to talk with Dr. Kippler about it when we ran into Jesus." She answered, directing the last part to her wife.

"Is she gonna be ok?" Jude asked.

"I think so, buddy." Stef replied as she pushed back the hair from his forehead. "But I'm thinking you three need to get some sleep in your own beds." Stef said as she looked at Lena to ensure she thought the same thing.

"I'm gonna get Jude discharged and the three of you are going to head home and have some dinner and get some rest." Lena agreed.

"I'll call Mike to see if he can pick you guys up." Stef said, but Brandon quickly put up his hand. "I'll call him." He offered before pulling out his phone and leaving the hospital room.

"Come on, Jude. Let's get you discharged." Lena said as she used her head to point down to her middle son who was in the same place he had been when he first entered the room before leaving with her youngest.

Stef exhaled and looked over Mariana's body to see her son. "Jesus." She called out. He lifted his head and she could see tears pooled in his eyes. "Oh baby." She said, her heart breaking. She knew Jesus didn't like to cry, but he must have been scared to death when he saw his twin lying unconscious in the car. "Baby I need you to go home with Brandon and Jude." She said, trying to hurry him along so the doctor, who was waiting patiently, could finish checking Mariana. "But mom...!" He started before Stef interrupted.

"I know you want to be here with her, but honestly, there isn't much you can be doing by staying here. And since Mama and I both need to be here, I really need you to help Brandon with Jude." Stef said, giving him a small smile.

Jesus looked from his mom to his twin, who smiled at him as well. "I'm ok, Jesus. Promise." She said, holding out a shaky pinky to her brother. Jesus bit his lip before linking his own pinky with hers. "Ok. I'll be waiting for you at home." He said, finally getting up.

"I'll call you guys later to let you know what is happening here." She informed her son as he walked towards the door. "I love you."

"Love you, mom. Love you, Mari." He said as he shut the door behind him.

* * *

Lena quickly got her youngest discharged and ready to go home. Brandon had gotten ahold of his father and he came and picked the boys up after a half hours on strict orders from Lena to call if Jude so much as coughed in a manner that sounded like something was wrong or hurting.

Chuckling at the concerned mother, Mike nodded and led the boys out of the hospital. Before they all left, Lena grabbed ahold of Brandon's arm and halted him from following his brothers.

"I just wanted to thank you..." Lena began before Brandon cut him off. "It's fine."

Lena sighed, but continued. "I know. But I truly appreciate you stepping up." She said before giving him a quick hug.

"Love you." She whispered to him.

"I love you too." He responded before pulling away and catching up to his brothers and father.

Pulling herself together, Lena took a few breaths before making her way back to the room Mariana and Stef were in. She opened the door quietly and saw that Mariana was curled up into a ball on the be that Stef begged her to move to. After 10 minutes of pleading, Stef took it upon herself to scoop up her daughter and carry her to the bed, which was not taken well by the girl. Once she had gotten to the actual hospital bed, she turned away from Stef and hadn't spoken since. Stef knew her daughter would be upset, but she felt it was the best option at the time. So, she respected the teen's want for distance, and took a seat in the chair by the foot of the bed.

"What happened?" Lena whispered as she inched her way into the room.

Stef looked up and went to greet her wife. "I carried her to the bed. She wasn't too thrilled." She said simply.

"Did they check her?" She asked the blonde.

"Yes. Other than bruises and cuts, nothing major." Stef said and Lena exhaled. "However, she did have a huge bruise on her upper thigh." Stef said in a whisper, hoping Mariana couldn't hear.

"From the crash?" Lena asked. Trying to figure out how she could get a bruise on her leg from the accident. "Did something fall on her leg?" She asked.

Stef shook her head. "I wasn't from today." She simply said before turning towards the girl.

"What is it..." Lena began before Stef shook her head. "We'll talk more at home. Doctor said she can be released after he checks everything once more."

Lena nodded before sharing her information. "Mike just got the boys. They should be home in a few minutes" She said, checking her watch.

"And Callie?" Stef asked, hoping she would be released today as well so they could all be home for the night, as it was already past 11 and she knew everyone was exhausted.

"I talked to Dr. Kippler and told him what I could remember. I need to look through her file again." She said, getting a little off topic. "And Jude's."

Stef simply nodded, waiting for Lena to continue.

"But he said the CAT scan came back fine. She does have a concussion, so we have to watch for that, but she can be released soon." She finished before walking over to Mariana. "Will you wait with Callie?" Lena asked and Stef nodded. She knew she wanted some alone time with her youngest daughter.

Stef kissed Lena before turning to leave. "Oh. Doctor Hansen should be back any..." She was interrupted by the door opening and the doctor walked in. "Right now!" She said with a small chuckle.

Lena nodded and walked over to her daughter.

"I told her about the bruise and we're gonna talk with Mariana about it when we get home. But you promise it's nothing life-threatening, correct?" Stef asked as the two adults stood by the open door.

The doctor shook his head. "It is healing- she probably got it a few months ago." He stated.

"Thanks." Stef responded with a smile before slipping out the door and heading to Callie's room. She stopped to grab a drink from the water fountain and have a moment for herself. She was lucky in the sense that this outcome could have been so much worse, but she knew they were far from alright.

* * *

Stef entered the room Callie was occupying just as the nurses were removing the IV from her hand and getting her ready to leave.

"Hi, my love." Stef said shooting the girl a small smile and grabbing the girl's jacket, which was removed once they got into the hospital.

Callie didn't respond. She merely nodded and looked down at the floor.

"You ready to go home?" Stef asked, choosing to ignore the lack of response for the time being.

Callie nodded and hopped off of the stretcher, stopping when she felt the room begin to spin.

"Woah!" Stef said as she ran over to the girl and helped steady her.

After a few moments, Callie shrugged herself away from Stef and walked towards the door.

"Hold on." Stef called out to her as she looked at the nurse who was still in the room, getting ready to change the sheets. "So can we just go?" She asked, keeping an eye on Callie.

"Your wife has all of the information from Dr. Kippler. Sorry he had to run to an emergency, so he isn't here to talk with you as well." The nurse apologized.

"That's alright." Stef said with a smile. "Thank you."

"No problem"

"Come on, Cal." Stef said as she walked over to the teen and tried to put her arm around the girl, who promptly stepped forward, and out of Stef's reach. "Wait a minute." Stef said, causing Callie to stop, but not look back. "What's wrong?" Stef asked.

Callie didn't respond, but tears began to form as she tried to hide her feelings.

"Callie. Look at me." Stef said with a stern tone.

Finally, the girl turned to the blonde and Stef could see the tears threatening to spill over at any second.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" She asked, tilting her head.

"I'm so sorry." Callie confessed as the tears fell and her head fell into her hands.

"Oh Callie." Stef said as she wrapped her arms around the girl. "Oh sweetie. This wasn't your fault, my sweet, sweet girl." Stef said as she felt sobs rack the girl's body. "Come on. Let's get you and your sister home." Stef said, not wanting to be in the hospital any longer than they needed.

As the two walked towards the front desk, Stef rubbed her hand up and down the girl's arm. "It's ok. You're ok. I love you."


	10. Scary Movie

**Thank you everyone for the reviews! I am working on a part 3 to the car accident story, but I am not exactly sure where I would like it to go as of now. **

**Thanks, Baylin, for this idea, and all of the other ones!**

**A movie triggers something for Callie**

"You about ready, Jude?" Lena called up to her youngest son, who was getting ready to go to a sleepover.

"Yeah. Hold on!" The boy answered as he finally came barreling down the stairs.

"Woah! Take it easy there, babe! Promise I won't leave without ya." The mother said with a wink.

"Sorry." Jude said as his head slightly drooped down.

"Hey." Lena said, cupping his chin in her hand, "It's ok for you to be excited. Just slow down on the stairs." She said with a smile. "Come on."

Lena reached over and grabbed the boy's backpack while Jude used both of his hands to carry the sleeping bag.

"Bye, my love! Have fun!" Stef said as she stepped into the room to give her youngest a kiss on the head before returning to the dishes that she was taking care of.

"I will!" Jude said with a smile and he headed out the door, followed by Lena, who closed it behind her.

Outside, Jesus was just riding up the driveway on his skateboard, coming home from a friend's house.

"Hey bud! Goin' to Justin's?" The older boy asked his brother.

Jude nodded eagerly.

"Have fun!" Jesus said as he ruffled the boy's hair and walked up the steps to the house, skateboard in hand.

* * *

"Mom!" Jesus called out as he opened the door, tossed his jacket, shoes, and board to the side and walked into the house.

"I'd better not see that skateboard lying somewhere in this house" Stef called from the kitchen, causing Jesus to pick up the board and put it in the garage.

The teen walked back into the kitchen and his mother met him with a smirk.

"How do you always know?" He asked as he filled up his cup with water.

"You're my kid. I know you." Stef replied. "And I know you stink." She said, crinkling her nose in disgust.

"Wow. Thanks, mom!" Jesus said in a mock hurt voice.

"Go shower." Stef said, raising her eyebrows.

Sighing, Jesus turned to head to the second floor when he stopped and turned around. "Hey mom"

"What do you want?" Stef asked, her eyebrows raising again and her head tilting when the teen questioned how she knew he wanted something.

"Well, since Jude is gone tonight, maybe can we watch a scary movie? Like Reincarnation or Death of Many or Bloody Remains." Jesus began listing off movies that he knew would be inappropriate for Jude to watch.

Mariana walked into the room, her arms crossed and her face disgusted. "Eww. No way, Jesus. No way are we watching those movies." She said matter-of-factly as she moved to sit at the kitchen table.

"Says you!" Jesus argued back.

"Says Mama. You know she'd never let you watch those movies." Mariana responded, tossing her hair with attitude.

"Just because Jude is usually here. Death of Mary is only rated R because of one little scene!" He exclaimed, focusing his plea to his mother, who had sat down next to her daughter.

Stef focused on her son. "And how do you know that?" She asked.

"Luke told me!" He expressed, trying to continue. "His parents let him and his brothers watch it!"

Stef looked at him suspiciously. "I dono. You're gonna have to talk to Mama about this one." Stef said, not wanting to make any decisions if Lena wouldn't be comfortable with it.

"Why can't we watch Love Actually or Secret Lovers?" Mariana asked, looking at her mom.

"Uhhh no, Mariana! Something that we can't watch while Jude is here." Jesus said, rolling his eyes.

"Hey now!" Stef chastised.

"I'm not saying I don't want him here. I'm just saying he is over at his friend's house and we should be able to watch a higher-rated movie while he isn't here." Jesus explained.

"Mama will be home in less than 10." Stef said as she got up and kissed her daughter on the top of the head as she focused on her phone. "You can ask her when she gets here."

Jesus sighed before getting up and out of his chair and walking up the stairs.

"Brandon?" The teen called out, knocking on his brother's door.

After a moment of shuffling, Brandon opened the door. "What?" He asked, cracking his knuckles.

"Jude is gone at his friend's house for a sleepover and I thought we could watch a scary movie that moms won't let us have in the house when Jude is here. You in?" He asked with hopeful eyes.

"Dude. Do you remember the last time you tried to sneak around moms? You were grounded for a month." He pointed out, crossing his arms at his younger brother.

"I don't mean to watch it behind their backs. I already asked mom and she said to ask mama when she gets home. I just figured if you backed me up that it wasn't too scary, that she would let us watch it." Jesus explained.

Brandon looked as if he was thinking it over, then nodded his head. "Mkay. What were you thinking?" He asked as Callie passed by his room towards the bathroom.

"Oh maybe Callie will too!" Jesus said as he turned to fully face the girl.

Callie gave them a look before responding. "Maybe Callie will do what too?" Though she didn't know if she actually wanted to know. With Jesus, you never knew what was going on in his head.

"Jude is gone tonight and if the three of us convince moms, maybe we can watch a scary movie." Jesus explained once more.

"Uhh yeah. I mean I'm in." Callie said.

Jesus pumped his fist in the air, causing Callie and Brandon to look at one another and roll their eyes.

"Good luck trying to convince Lena. Even with us." Callie said as she walked into the bathroom and closed the door.

"Yeah dude." Brandon agreed before turning back to his room.

* * *

When Jesus heard the front door open, he ran down the stairs clutching a pile of papers. As he made it into the kitchen, he waited for Lena and Stef to release each other from a hug before clearing his throat.

"Oh this otta be good." Stef said as she sat down and folded her hands together and placed them on the table.

"What's going on, Jesus?" Lena asked with a concerned look.

"Ok. I know you're gonna say no right away, but..." Jesus began before he heard Stef stifle a chuckle.

"I'm sorry, baby. Keep going." Stef said, biting her lip to keep from smiling.

"Since Jude is gone tonight, we were thinking we could watch a scary movie." Jesus said, handing his mother the papers. "This is the description of the ones we were hoping to watch." He added.

"We?" Stef asked as she too peaked at the papers.

"Well I dono about Mariana, but Brandon and Callie are in." He said.

Lena took a moment to skim the papers before talking. "I don't know, Jesus. These are all rated R. And you're only 15."

"But look." Jesus said as he came over to the mother and pointed down at the paper. "It's only because of a couple of scenes. And it's just because of the action." He explained.

Lena looked through the descriptions once more before exhaling deeply and looking at her son.

"Fine." Lena said, stunning both her son and her wife.

"Really? Thank..." Jesus began before Lena continued.

"You will watch this movie" She said, pointing to one of the papers, " in the living room while mom and I get some stuff done upstairs. If I hear anything I don't like, it goes off. And if any of your siblings want it off, it goes off. Understand?" She asked and Jesus nodded excitedly.

"Thank you!" He responded before running up the stairs to ask Brandon to drive him to the store to rent the movie.

"Wow." Stef said, wrapping her arms around her wife.

"What?" She asked, twisting to face the blonde.

"I'm just surprised, that's all." Stef said with a smile.

Lena smiled back and kissed her wife. "Hopefully this will give us some of our own rated R time." She said with a wink, leaving Stef with her mouth hanging wide open. It was rare when Lena talked like this, but she wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to get some alone time with her wife.

* * *

Less than a half hour later, Brandon and Jesus had made it back from the store and the 4 oldest children sat down in the living room to watch the movie. Mariana had reluctantly joined, claiming that the movie was going to be stupid, but Callie pointed out that this would probably never happen again and that she should take what she can get.

So, after bags of popcorn had been made, and Jesus and Mariana had argued for 5 minutes about whether or not the light should be left on or turned off, they settled in, the hall light on and the family room lights off.

Jesus and Brandon sat in the two single chairs, each with their own bowls of popcorn and a blanket. The girls occupied the couch, sharing a bowl of popcorn and a blanket.

"Oh my gosh! No! Don't go in there!" Mariana commented for the third time within the first 20 minutes of the movie. Jesus glared at his twin.

"Sorry!" She said, holding her hands up in surrender and snuggling into Callie's shoulder. She had gotten so comfortable with Callie as her sister and was glad she finally had another girl in the house to endure her brothers with her.

Callie looked over at Mariana and smiled. She really did feel like part of the Adams Foster family. Here she was sitting on the couch, watching a scary movie with her siblings, eating popcorn, and she could actually pay attention to the movie because she wasn't distracted with protecting her brother. The brunette sighed and relaxed into the couch, letting herself engage in the film.

* * *

About halfway through the movie, most of the popcorn was gone, Mariana had stopped commenting, and she kept her head covered by the blanket, only peaking out every few seconds before diving back under.

The movie progressed to the main character as she walked into an old abandoned house. The girl crept into the house, trying to keep quiet and made it only a foot before someone reached out and grabbed her.

All four kids jumped at the sudden grab but remained silent, wanting to know what happened next.

The girl in the movie was being dragged into a closet by a man. He shoved her into the small, cramped room and slammed the door shut, locking it behind him.

As the man walked away from the screaming girl, Brandon, Mariana, and Jesus' heart rates began to decrease, while Callie's increased. As the sounds of the girl pounding on the door and her screams lingered, Callie felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. _Relax, Cal. Calm down!_ She tried to talk herself out of where her mind was taking her, but she could feel her chest tightening and her breathing increase.

Callie threw off the blanket from her body, suddenly feeling extremely hot and claustrophobic.

At the sudden movement, Mariana glanced over at the older girl for a moment before doing a double take when she saw the girl's hand on her chest. "Callie?" She asked, completely ignoring the movie.

"I'm fine." Callie said, looking to the younger girl and forcing a smile. "Promise. Just got a little hot." She explained. "Keep watching. I'm gonna get some water." She continued as she stood up to quickly leave the room.

However, Callie wasn't anticipating her head spinning from her shortness of breath and she stumbled to her knees. "Callie!" Mariana yelled, significantly louder and this time gaining the attention of her brothers.

"What's wrong?" Brandon asked as Jesus paused the movie and they both made their way over to the girl.

By this point, Callie had tuned out the other noises and tried to focus on her own thoughts. Thoughts of one of her earlier foster fathers and when he used to throw her into a closet and keep her locked in there for days. He eventually was investigated and arrested after Callie lost so much weight from the lack of food he provided the girl. She tried to suck in as much air as possible, but it felt like her throat was tightening up.

Upon hearing her gasping for air, Brandon looked at Mariana. "Go get moms."

Halting only to glance once more at Callie, Mariana ran up the stairs and knocked quickly on her moms' door. "Mom!" Mariana called out in a panicked tone, causing the women to quicken their pace and open the door.

"What's wrong?" Lena asked, putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder and staring at her.

"Callie. She... I dono really." Mariana started before Stef took off down the stairs and ran into the family room where she could see Brandon and Jesus huddled over who she thought had to be Callie.

"Callie?" Stef called out, causing both boys to stand up and look over as the blonde cop walked over to the girl who was still on the floor, clutching her chest and breathing heavily.

"Boys, go by mama." She instructed quickly before kneeling down next to the girl and trying to determine how to approach her without making the situation worse.

"Callie. Sweetie." Stef gently said, placing a hand on the girl's shaking back. At the physical touch, the girl lifted her head and tried to straighten up and smile. "Oh hi. Sorry. I'm fine." She said though the hitches in her breathing and her distant look told another story.

"Come sit down." Stef ordered, helping the teen over to the couch. Stef squatted in front of the brunette and Lena was soon next to her, holding out a glass of water.

"I had the others go upstairs for a bit." She informed both her wife and daughter and tried to smile at the girl whose hands were shaking as she tried to hold the cup.

"Ok Callie. I need you to relax. Look at me and breathe." Stef instructed, trying to capture the girl's gaze.

Feeling helpless, Lena sat down on the couch next to Callie and wrapped her arms around the girl's shoulders. "In and out. In and out." Lena said in a steady rhythm.

Callie's head was spinning at an even faster pace and at some point, she felt the cup of water being removed from her grip.

"Callie. Callie, sweetie." She could hear someone calling out her name, but she couldn't focus on who was talking. All she could think about was the closet, that old, dirty, tiny closet. And that smell. At the thought of the smell, Callie's stomach lurched and as much as she tried to hold it together, she vomited on the rug.

"Oh baby." Lena muttered, rubbing the girl's back in a soothing manner. "Shhh sweetie. It's ok. You're ok." She whispered to the girl.

"Don't worry about that." Stef said as she saw the look of horror in the girl;s eyes as she spotted the mess. "Just concentrate on me and breathe." Stef instructed once more. "Come on, baby doll. Slow down your breathing. You're fine. You're safe."

Once Callie's breathing became more manageable, Stef held up the cup of water that she had grabbed from the girl's hands when it seemed like she was shaking too much for her to hold it without spilling. "Drink some, my love."

Callie thankfully took the cup and drank slowly, allowing herself more time to relax.

Stef took the water out of the girl;s hands once she indicated she was done, and placed it on the coffee table next to her. As if she could feel both sets of eyes on her, Callie dropped her head and stared at her feet, hoping they would leave her alone.

"Callie?"

The teen sighed in frustration at the concerned mother's tone. She knew they would be worried, and that she owed them an explanation of some sort, so she lifted up her head and was met with the concerned faces of her mothers.

"I'm sorry." She mumbled and her gaze fell back towards the floor, but before it reached all the way, Stef captured her chin with her hand and gently lifted it.

"What happened?" She asked, with a tone that didn't leave room for anything but the truth.

"I... It's stupid." She began before Stef shook her head and kept her gaze on the girl. "No. It's not stupid."

Callie shrugged her shoulders. "There was a scene in the movie that reminded me of something and I got scared." She confessed, not lying, but not telling the entire truth.

Lena and Stef looked at one another and sighed. They knew there was more to the reason, but they also knew that it would probably take some time for her to feel comfortable enough to vocalize it.

"Why don't we get you into a shower and you can brush your teeth." Lena suggested as she stood up and held out her hand to the teen.

Slowly, Callie stood up. Stef mirrored her motions, but reached out to grab the swaying girl. "Take your time." She instructed as she waited until the girl seemed to be steady.

Callie looked away from both moms, completely horrified by what had happened, and began to walk towards the stairs.

Sighing in defeat, Lena started to let her hand drop, but Stef swooped in and gathered it in her own, bringing her wife's mocha fingers up to her mouth and kissing them.

Lena smiled at her wife and they followed Callie up the stairs. They had a long way to go with this one.


	11. Geting The Twins Part 1

**I love writing about young Brandon, Jesus, and Mariana! So this is the story of the day the twins came to live with the Fosters. **

**Please note that Brandon is 6 and the twins are 5. I wanted to change their ages. **

**Thanks for all of the positive reviews! Remember to send any suggestions of stories you would like to see! **

* * *

"But when mommy?" 6-year-old Brandon whined as he followed his blonde mother around the kitchen.

"Sweetie, Mama said she will be back any minute and then we can go see them." Stef answered. She had been running around the house all day getting ready to welcome the two new guests they had staying with them. It had been almost 2 years since Lena and Stef had moved in together and they had been working on paperwork for over a year to become foster parents. Finally the day was here that they would get to move 5-year-old twins Mariana and Jesus into their house. The guest room had already been prepped with two beds, dressers, and much to Brandon's approval, toys.

Lena was coming home from a board meeting and as soon as she arrived, they wanted to get on the road to take the 2 hour drive to meet up with Bill, the twins' caseworker.

"How many minutes now?" Brandon asked, not knowing Stef was becoming frustrated. She knew that he was excited- and so was she. But it was the 10th time he had asked her that same question since they had arrived home a half hour earlier.

Stef stopped and squatted down to her son's height. "How about you go wait for mama by the window?" She suggested. "And you can let me know when you see her pull in so I know." Stef continued, hoping that if she gave Brandon a task, that he would focus on that.

"Okay, mommy!" He exclaimed happily and ran to the living room in order to spy out the window.

Stef smiled and stood back up. She looked around the kitchen and her smile widened. She and Lena had been waiting for this moment for such a long time. She couldn't believe it was finally here!

* * *

Lena had arrived home only 5 minutes after Brandon had found a spot to sit by the window and as soon as he saw her car, he sprinted to tell Stef, yelling through the house.

"Brandon! No need to yell, sweetie." Stef said as she walked down the stairs. She went to grab a jacket for herself and for her son and handed the coat to the boy. "Well come on! You were so excited! Shake a leg!" Stef chuckled as Brandon's eyes widened.

"Wait! I have to bring my toys for them!" He suddenly realized and made his way to the stairs, only to be stopped by Stef's grasp. She lifted him high up in the air and smiled. "We already packed some toys in your bag, remember?" She lowered her son onto her hip and walked over to greet Lena, who had just walked through the door.

"Hi, love." Lena said, her smile reaching from ear to ear.

"Hi!" Stef's excitement mirroring her partner's as she leaned in and kissed the curly-haired woman.

"Are you excited, Brandon?!" Lena asked as the boy reached over towards her.

Brandon nodded his head as Lena took him onto her hip and smiled. He played with her curls as she walked further into the house. "I'm gonna bring my toys." Brandon stated and Lena nodded in response. "You are being so nice and sharing your toys!" Lena praised as she pressed a kiss to the boy's forehead.

"Ewww kisses!" Brandon said as he wiped the side of his face where Lena's lips had been.

Lena looked over at Stef who rolled her eyes and chuckled.

"Ok, my loves. If we have everything, we should get on the road." Stef exclaimed as she picked up the bags of toys they were bringing, along with some other necessities, like snacks.

"B, can you go with mom. I have to go potty." Lena asked the brunette as she put him down on his feet.

"Come on, bud." Stef said with a smile and reached out her hand.

Brandon eagerly took it and she led him to the garage.

"Mommy! You have my toys?" Lena heard Brandon ask as she walked into the bathroom and smiled, knowing he had probably already asked Stef that question numerous times today.

* * *

2 hours and only 1 rest stop (because Brandon just couldn't hold it) later, the three turned into a parking lot. Stef checked the GPS to make sure that they were at the correct location.

"Come on, mommy!" Brandon said from his booster seat. He hadn't quite gotten the process of unbuckling himself, much to Stef and Lena's praise, so he simply kicked his feet against the seat in front of him.

"Brandon, please stop kicking." Lena said gently as she turned around. "I know you're excited. We're just checking that we got everything done." Lena explained and Brandon stopped kicking.

Finally, Stef and Lena opened their doors to get out. Stef opened Brandon's side door and unbuckled him while Lena got the bags out of the trunk.

"B. I need you to look at me." Stef said before lifting the boy out of the car. Brandon took a moment to turn his head but he finally looked at his mother. "Ok. I know you are so excited to play with Jesus and Mariana, but you have to remember that they might be a little scared and shy. And that's ok. You can't get upset with them. And if they don't want to play with you, that's ok too. They need some time to adjust. Got it?" Stef said in a light but firm tone.

Brandon nodded his head.

"You sure?" Stef asked as she poked at the boy's sides. "You sure you got it?" She said as she continued poking her son and eventually tickling him.

"Come on, goofballs!" Lena said with a chuckle.

Stef smiled and lowered Brandon to the ground, making sure to grab ahold of his hand, and the three walked towards the building together, each lost in their own thoughts.

* * *

"Where are they?" Brandon asked as soon as they walked through the doors.

Stef chuckled and smiled at Lena "Let's take a deep breath and relax a bit, ok bud?" Stef said as she gently squeezed the boy's hand.

"Oh there's Bill" Lena said, pointing towards a tall man. To his left stood two small Latino children clutching each other's hand.

Both moms smiled as they approached the three. Stef's grip tightened slightly on Brandon's hand as he tried to break away from their grasp- wanting to run over to the two children.

"Hello Bill." Lena said as she stook her hand out and shook his hand.

"Hello. So sorry for the inconvenience, but I needed to be here for another two hours with another little girl and I couldn't get anyone to drive them to you." He said as he scratched at his arm.

"That's alright." Stef said with a smile. Her eyes traveled down towards her partner who had let go of Brandon's hand and squatted down in front of the twins.

"Hi!" She said with her never-failing gentle smile. "I'm Lena. Do you remember me?" She asked. The kids had met both moms once before, though it had been a few months prior.

The small girl shrunk further behind her brother, but the boy responded. "Yeah. I remember you."

Lena smiled and moved her head slightly to catch the eyes of the young girl. "You about you, Mariana? Remember when Stef and I came to see you last time? And we played board games?" Lena tried to put the pleasant memory of their last visit into her head, even though she acted about the same as she was at the present moment.

Finally, the little girl nodded ever so slightly before burying her face into her brother's shirt.

Lena took what she could and smiled back. "Yeah! It was so fun! And you know what? We have a bunch of board games at our house that you can play with whenever you want!" Lena continued, though she was now mainly addressing Jesus, who was the only one she could physically see.

Jesus smiled and nodded his head. "Hermana and I love board games." He exclaimed with a smile.

Lena smiled right back at him. "I'm so glad! We do too!" She said as she looked up at Stef, who had by then picked up Brandon and held him on her hip to ensure that he didn't try and run over to the two kids.

"We sure do!" Stef agreed as she brought herself and Brandon down to Lena's level. "Would you play a game with us?" She asked with a smile.

Jesus nodded his head eagerly, while his twin stayed hidden behind the boy.

"I am so excited!" Stef responded. "And you know, this is my son Brandon. And he is 6 and brought some toys to share with you!" Stef said as she set Brandon down and pulled the bag of toys over towards the children.

Brandon began pulling out everything in the bag and Jesus stared down at the pile like it was Christmas. Even Mariana poked her head out to see what they had brought.

"You wanna play with my toys?" Brandon asked eagerly as Jesus simply watched.

Jesus nodded and sat himself down next to Brandon and grabbed an action figure.

Startled at the loss of her hiding place, Mariana's face paled as she looked around for a place to hide.

Luckily, by that time, both Lena and Stef had stood up from their crouched positions and were talking with Bill. When Lena saw Mariana begin to panic, she crouched down to the girl's height and began to soothe her.

"Hey! It's ok! Jesus is just playing with some toys. You're ok." She started. The young girl's eyes began to fill with tears and Lena's motherly instincts kicked in. "You're ok, my love." She cooed. "I know it's so scary, but Stef and I are going to take really good care of you and your brother." She continued as the tears began to fall from her eyes.

Lena sighed. "Can I give you a hug?" She asked, hoping that the girl would agree.

It took a moment, but after Lena had opened her arms for the girl, she entered the warm embrace of the mother, rested her head on her shoulder, and let the tears flow.

Lena put both arms protectively around the girl's body and stood up, whispering soothing words into her ear and rubbing her back.

Stef smiled sadly at her love and the young girl who had trusted her enough to be held. "So I think we should get everyone home, it's gonna be a long drive back." Stef concluded as she reached out to shake Bill's hand.

"Of course." Bill responded, knowing that all of the paperwork had previously been taken care of and there wasn't anything legal that needed to be done at that time.

"Ok. Brandon and Jesus it's time to go!" Stef said as she walked over to the boys who were playing with several of the toys.

"Aww mom!" Brandon whined. "Jesus and I were playing!"

Stef smiled. She usually didn't condone whining, but seeing her son get along so well with her new foster son made her heart beam with joy.

"I know, bud but It's gonna be a long ride home and everyone is getting tired." Stef tried to reason with the boy.

"I'm not tired!" He responded.

"Come on, B. Pick up the toys and be mommy's helper please." Stef said in a firm voice.

Brandon hung his head and nodded. "Ok mommy." He began to pick up the toys while Jesus held onto the action figure tightly in his fist. Stef saw the slight panic set in the younger boy's eyes and walked over to him.

"Hey bud. If you want, you can hold onto that toy in the car." She said gently, tapping at the toy so he would look down at it.

The panic flew away in an instant and he smiled. "Okay. Thank you" He responded.

Once the toys had all been packed into the bag, minus a toy for each boy to hold in the car, the now family of 5 began to walk towards the door.

"Thanks again, Bill." Stef said over her shoulder as she was dragged out by both boys who were occupying her hands. Lena followed behind, a half sleeping Mariana in her arms. It had only taken 5 short minutes for the girl to cry herself into a dazed sleep and Lena was somewhat relieved that getting her into the car would be easier than if she was awake.

When Lena reached the car, she could already hear the arguments about seating.

"Mommy! I wanna sit next to Jesus!" Brandon cried as Stef climbed into the backseat with them. They had decided to put the twins next to each other in their car seats, and Brandon was to stay in the single seat behind the driver's seat.

"Bud. This is where the car seats are right now. When we get home, we can talk about changing them around." Stef compromised.

Brandon folded his arms and pouted. "That's not fair." He said as Set eased her way back out of the car and looked down at her son.

"Brandon. You are not being a very big boy right now." She warned, raising an eyebrow at her son's attitude. "I know you want to sit next to Jesus, but we already have all of the car seats strapped in. This is where you're sitting." She stated simply and looked at Jesus, who had stayed quiet. "Ready, bud?" She asked with a smile.

Jesus looked from Stef to Brandon as to try and gage the two before he nodded and lifted his arms up. Stef quickly scooped him up and kissed the side of his head before helping him into the car. Jesus giggled at the show of affection and got happily into his booster.

"Alright, my love." Stef said as she looked at Brandon. You ready to be my big boy helper?" She asked and gave her son a pleading look.

Brandon sighed and smiled. "Okay, mommy. I'm sorry."

Stef smiled and lifted Brandon up and into the car. "Thank you, B!" She praised as he got into his booster and Stef helped both boys buckle.

Finally she looked out and saw that Lena was standing with a now fully asleep Mariana in her arms, gently rocking her. Stef's heart swelled and she smiled, reaching out towards Lena. "Here. I'll buckle her in." Stef said.

Lena carefully leaned into the car and tried to unlatch the girl from her body and hand her to Stef. However, as soon as Stef's arms touched the girl's her little brown eyes shot open and she began to flail her arms and kick her legs, surprisingly, without a sound.

"Hey, hey, hey! It's ok!" Lena cooed as she took the girl back into her arms. "Honey you're ok." She kissed the girl on the forehead and smoothed out some of her hair from her face. "Stef was just putting you into the booster seat so we can go home." Lena informed the girl who would not lighten her grip on the brunette's shirt.

Lena looked at Stef who smiled sadly. "Come on, love." Stef tried to coax the girl to let go of Lena, but to no avail.

Lena sighed and thought for a moment. "Look your seat is right next to Jesus!" She commented as she turned her body so the girl could see into the car. Mariana opened her eyes to see for a moment, but shook her head and buried her face back into Lena's curls.

Lena exhaled and decided there was one other option she could try. "What about if I sit next to you?" She asked. The little girl stopped and sniffled a little before nodding her head slightly.

"Good choice, sweets! I wish I could sit next to Lena too!" Stef responded as she got out of the back of the car.

Lena slowly stepped into the car and somehow made it to the back seats where Jesus was already strapped in.

"Hermana! Esta bien!" He tried to calm his sister by telling her it was ok, but she still had a look of panic on her face.

"Ok, sweetie. Time to get into your booster!" Lena said as she tried to se the girl down.

Mariana shook her head and held tighter onto the woman.

"Mariana, honey you have to be in a booster seat. It's the law. But look. Right next to you. See this spot? I'm gonna sit here the whole time." Lena said as she reached around her neck and unclasped the little hands that had latched on to one another.

As Lena finally got the little girl into her seat, she could see silent tears running down the girl's face. She sighed and used her thumbs to push away the fallen tears before finishing buckling the girl. As promised, she sat down right next to the Latina and buckled herself in. "Ok. Ready to go?" She asked. She received two 'yups' from the boys and one 'yes' from the blonde in the driver's seat. And even though Mariana hadn't said anything, she nodded to Stef and the car took off back home.


	12. Weight class PArt 1

**AN 1: Hey! Sorry for the delay. This is a 2-shot story featuring Jesus! **

_"Dude. Weigh-in is in a week. What are you doing?" _

_Jesus glared at his wrestling teammate as he finished off his second sandwich at lunch. "Relax." He answered before reaching into his backpack and pulling out a bag of potato chips. "I'll be at my weight class by the time we have to check in." _

Jesus thought back to 3 days prior when his teammate Asa warned him about sticking to his weight class. He fisted his fingers and pounded the bathroom wall in frustration. He needed to lose almost 10 pounds to get back down into his weight group.

_4 days to lose 10 pounds?_ He thought to himself. _No problem_.

* * *

"Jesus! Come on! Shake a leg!" Stef yelled up the stairs to her son. "Mama has to leave early today. She's waiting in the car for you!"

"I'm coming! Gosh! Chill!" Jesus grumbled as he grabbed his backpack and huffed down the stairs.

Stef raised an eyebrow at her middle son. "Excuse me?"

"Sorry." He quickly replied in response to his attitude.

"Yeah, yeah." Stef scoffed at the boy and held out a protein bar and a piece of fruit. "Here. Eat this on the way." She instructed. She had grabbed an easy and quick breakfast for her son when she realized he was going to be running too late to sit down and eat anything.

"Thanks, mom." Jesus replied, taking the food and rushing past her out the front door.

"Love you too." Stef said as she heard the door slam shut.

* * *

"What is wrong with you?" Mariana asked as the kids got out of the car and began to walk towards their building.

"I have meetings after school, so please wait for mom to pick you guys up today, alright?" Lena asked as she quickly checked her bag once more to be sure that she remembered everything.

The woman heard a chorus of 'yes' and ok mom' and nodded her head, indicating they should make their way into the building.

Momentarily forgetting Mariana's question, Jesus continued to walk.

"Jesus!" Mariana called after her brother again and gave him a look of confusion.

"What, Mariana?" The teen asked, clearly frustrated with his sister.

"What is going on with you?" She asked once more, cocking her head as if she could understand him by looking at him in the eyes.

"Nothing?" Jesus responded, trying to shrug off the blatant lie that he just told. In reality, he hadn't eaten anything for over 24 hours and was currently feeling slightly light-headed as a result. Knowing his moms were very observant, it wasn't easy for him to skip dinner, especially on a school night, but he managed to 'have dinner' at a friend's house in order to skip out on the meal the previous night.

"Come on, Jesus. I know-" Mariana began before Jesus whipped around and glared down at the girl. "Look Mariana I'm fine! Just leave it the hell alone! Do you have to be in everyone's freaking business all the time?" He could see the hurt in her eyes as soon as the words left his mouth, but at the moment, he didn't care. He spun back around and stomped off in the direction of his first class, leaving a very stunned Mariana.

* * *

The day dragged on for Jesus. Even walking felt 10 times harder.

Finally, he made it to the end of the day. Once the last bell rang, he pulled himself up and out of his chair and slowly made his way to wrestling practice.

"Foster!"

Jesus spun around to see Asa running to catch up with him. He forced his head up in order to nod at his teammate and continued walking once he caught up.

"Dude. You look like hell. What's wrong?"

Jesus rolled his eyes. "Nothing. Just tired." He tried to shrug off the dizzy feeling and present himself in a normal manner. If Asa thought something was off, he wasn't going to make it past his moms or sister without them asking. _Damn it!_ He thought to himself as he walked into the locker room and trying to concentrate on thinking of a way to cover for his odd behavior when he got home.

"Dude hurry up."

Asa's grumbling voice pulled Jesus out of his thoughts and he realized that he was the last one in the locker room, still not changed from his school clothes.

"Sorry." Jesus mumbled as he threw open his locker and deposited his belongings into it.

Asa gave him a look of confusion before turning to leave. "Whatever, Foster."

_Yeah. Whatever._

* * *

"Jesus?" "Jesus!?" "Jesus honey can you hear me?"

_Mom?_

Jesus tried to open his eyes, but it felt like the lids were cemented shut. His head throbbed and his mouth felt dry.

"Jesus can you open your eyes?"

_I'm trying!_ He thought as he used every bit of strength he could find to crack open his eyes. His brow furrowed as he saw both of his moms looking down at him, their eyes flooding with concern.

"Mom?" He croaked out while trying to sit up from the lying position he had somehow ended up in.

"No baby. Stay lying down." Stef said as she gently pushed his shoulder back towards the ground and Lena put her hand under his head to guide it back.

Jesus looked around and noted that he was in the gym where he usually had wrestling practice, but the only people who were there with him were his moms and his coach. He tried to clear his throat so he could talk, but it felt too dry.

As if she read his mind, Stef reached behind her and pulled out his water bottle from his gym bag and cocked her head towards her son. "Take some sips." She instructed. Jesus didn't even try and stop her from holding the bottle up to his mouth, he was just happy to have the water.

Once he was able to take a few sips, he felt his throat clear significantly.

"Jesus look at me." Stef said, putting the water down and giving him a look of concern and fierce love. Once the boy's eyes met his mother's, she smiled before continuing. "Do you remember what happened?"

Jesus thought back to the last thing he remembered. He had ran out of the locker room minutes after Asa had left and made it to the mats shortly after. He remembered being extremely dizzy, but shaking it off to focus on his coach, who was giving them instructions on the drills they would be running that day. He remembered being paired with one of the older guys, Tyler, but from there it was fuzzy.

"Uhh." Jesus began, finding his voice. "I remember being paired up with Tyler, but honestly I don't remember anything after that. What happened?" He asked, suddenly aware of the severity of the event.

"You blacked out, sweetie." Lena said, still holding her son's head in her lap.

"What?" Jesus wondered how Stef had gotten there too.

"Mom was here picking up your siblings when someone came and told me you had blacked out. Brandon took everyone home so we could stay with you." Lena explained.

The sound of a loud grumble triggered Jesus' memory of the events leading up to that day. The weight class. Not eating. Dizzy feelings. It all began to make sense.

"Did you not have time for a snack after school?" Lena asked with confusion. She knew that Jesus always packed an extra snack when he had wrestling practice right after school.

Jesus thought quickly in order to avoid being questioned. "Yeah. I guess I just wasn't really feeling well."

Stef raised her eyebrow in confusion. "Did you eat the breakfast I gave you this morning?"

"Uhh yeah. Thanks by the way." Jesus said, his head still pounding as he lied.

Stef gave her son an unconvinced look, but before she could say anything in response, the wrestling coach walked over to the family.

"Would you still like me to call an ambulance?" He asked.

Lena looked at Stef and they had a conversation with their eyes. Lena had told the coach to hold off on calling right away so she could assess the situation.

Lena looked down at her son and brushed her hand over his head. "Honey, how do you feel?"

Jesus knew he needed to think fast in order to convince his moms that they didn't need to worry about him. "Oh yeah. I think I was just dehydrated." He said. "I can sit up." He said more confident than he felt and forced himself up.

"Slow! Slow, Jesus!" Stef warned as she held her hands out in case her son fell.

The boy stood up but immediately felt himself swaying. "Jesus!" Stef grabbed her son's arm.

After a moment, Jesus was more composed. "I'm fine. Just need to rehydrate." he explained quickly, scanning the gym for his bag.

Lena gave Stef a concerned look. She knew that Stef had dealt with more injury-type incidents and would probably know what to do better than herself.

Stef bit her lip as her son grabbed his bag and took another drink from his water bottle. She knew it was probably nothing serious to worry about, but there was a feeling in her gut that made her question brushing this off.

"Ok, love. We'll take you home, get you some dinner and see how you are doing later today." Stef decided, hoping to buy herself some time to figure out if something more was going on.

Jesus nodded as he bounced his foot. "Ok. Can we go?" He asked.

Stef looked at Lena who indicated with her head that she should take him. "I've got some work to finish up here." She explained.

"Ok." Stef responded as she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket. "I'm gonna text B to come pick us up." She explained as the three followed an already antsy Jesus out of the gym.

"Thanks, Coach Matthews." Lena said before they got to the door. She smiled and waved before closing the gym door behind her.

"I shouldn't be long." Lena stated as they walked towards the doors leading out of the school.

"Ok, love. Want me to start dinner?" Stef asked as she slipped her hand into the other woman's.

"I'd rather not come home to a burnt down house" She began with a smile. Stef poked her in the side, causing Lena to giggle. "But yes thank you that would be helpful." She concluded with a smile.

"One time! I screw up dinner one time and I never live it down!" Stef feigned hurt as she dramatically grabbed at her heart.

"It's ok. You make it up to me in the bedroom." Lena said quietly and gave Stef a quick kiss on the cheek.

Stef smiled and turned to face her love. She pulled Lena into her arms and looked deep into her eyes. She couldn't get enough of this woman. Both moms turned their attention towards the sound of a door shutting and saw Jesus continuing to walk outside without even realizing his moms had stopped.

"Keep an eye on him." Lena said, concern filling her tone.

"I was thinking the same thing. Something's off." Stef replied before turning back to her wife. "I will see you in a bit." Stef said before kissing Lena gently on the lips and squeezing her waist softly. "Love you."

"Love you too." Lena responded and watched as her wife walked out to catch up to her son.

* * *

Brandon arrived only minutes after Stef joined her son outside. Before she had a chance to open her mouth to ask him what was going on, Brandon pulled up to the curb and unlocked the doors. Jesus had quickly gotten into the back seat and shut the door behind him, leaving Stef to sigh in defeat and get into the passenger's side of the car.

The ride home was quiet except for the soft music of the radio. Each family member was in their own thoughts as Brandon drove the short trip back home.

Finally, Brandon broke the silence. "I need to stop by the music store after I drop you off."

"That's fine, baby." Stef responded, only half-listening to her oldest son. Her thoughts were on her younger son.

Finally, they turned into their neighborhood. "Thanks, B." Stef said as soon as they pulled into the driveway. Before the older boy had time to turn off the car completely, Jesus had opened his door and stumbled slightly out.

"What's wrong with him?" Brandon asked, crinkling his forehead at his brother's strange actions.

"Not sure." Stef said with a concentrated look on her face.

"You're gonna find out." Brandon stated with a knowing look.

"You bet your ass." Stef said quickly, briefly forgetting to not curse as she got out of the car and followed her son, who had by then made it into the house.

* * *

Before Stef could make her way up to her son's room, where figured he had run off to, she was stopped by Callie with a comforting arm around her sister. "What's wrong, my love?" Stef asked, praying that is was something manageable; she already had one kid who was off today.

"Nothing. It's stupid. He's stupid." She replied, angrily wiping the tears from her cheeks.

_Oh great. Boy trouble._ Stef thought to herself. "Something happen with you and Mat?" Stef asked, trying to give her daughter her full attention.

"No." She said quietly and tried to end the conversation there by leaving.

Stef, however, reached her arm out to stop her daughter. "Mari?" She asked, frowning when she could see the hurt on her daughter's face. "What happened, my love?" She asked, cupping her daughter's face and lifting it up.

The teen sniffled and pulled her face away from her mom. "I told you it's nothing." She insisted and continued to walk towards the stairs. "I have a lot of homework." She concluded and this time Stef allowed her to walk up the stairs, not missing the chocked sob as she disappeared up the stairs.

"What was that all about?" Stef asked Callie, who was still in the room.

"I dono really. Jesus came in and Mariana had been freaking out about him so she ran up to him and he kinda shoved her away." Stef waited for Callie to finish before responding. "And when Mariana asked him if he was alright, Jesus yelled at her."

Callie stopped, not wanting to tell Stef what the boy had said, but Stef needed to know the whole story. "What did he say?" Stef asked, putting her hands on her hips.

"Uhh." Callie fidgeted around a little as she lowered her voice. "He basically told her to quit being annoying and that she didn't understand and to leave him alone and that he hated her. Erm and some other words." Callie said, embarrassed.

Stef nodded her head as she looked up towards the stairs. "Thank you, sweets. Why don't you and Jude start on your homework." Stef suggested as she gave the teen a side hug and started for the stairs.

"Ok." The girl responded as she went to pick up her backpack and join Jude in the kitchen, who had stayed out of the way when Jesus started yelling.

Stef hadn't even made it to the steps when she heard a thump from upstairs, followed shortly by Mariana's worry-filled voice. "Mom!"

The blonde took the stairs two at a time and made it to the top in a matter of seconds. She saw that both twins' doors were open, but followed the crying sounds of her daughter to her sons' room.

"What happened?!" Stef exclaimed as she entered the room. Jesus was on the ground in an unconscious state, and Mariana was trying to hold as much of her brother in her arms as possible.

"Jesus!" She gasped as she rushed over to her son and fell to her knees. "Mari, what happened?" Stef asked as she looked over her son's body for any sign of physical injury. She checked for and was relieved when she found a heartbeat and signs of breathing.

Mariana's sobs made her words inaudible as she tried to talk.

"Mariana! Baby I need you to take a deep breath and tell me what happened." Stef said, her voice urging on panic.

The young girl tried her best to stop the flow of tears and slow her breathing, but she was scared.

"Baby. Look at me. Look at mommy." Stef said as she cradled her son's head in her lap and cupped her daughter's chin with her other hand. Finally, Mariana's brown eyes met her mother's blue ones. "Breathe. In and out. Good girl." She praised. "Good job baby girl. Now tell me what happened." She instructed once more.

However, before she could speak, Jesus began to gain consciousness.

"Jesus?" Stef whispered to her son as she brushed sweaty hair from his forehead. "You're ok. I'm right here." She cooed as her son began to familiarize himself with his surroundings.

"What?" Jesus tried to croak but his throat was dry. He tried to clear his throat, but began coughing.

"Mariana. Go get some water, please." She said out loud without looking away from her son. When she didn't feel the girl leave her side, she tore her eyes away from the boy and towards her daughter who was fighting back tears once more.

Sighing in frustration, Stef cleared her throat before loudly yelling "Callie! Could you come up here please?"

Moments later, Stef could hear footsteps on the stairs and she told the girl where she was.

"Can you call Lena and tell her she needs to come home?" She asked. "And could you also please bring up some water?"

Callie nodded her head as she pulled out her cell phone from her back pocket and headed downstairs to get water.

"Thank you, Callie."

Stef returned her attention to her twins. "Ok. Jesus, Mama is coming home and we're gonna take you to the hospital to-" Stef was interrupted by the look of fear on her son's face.

He shook his head and tried to sit up and protest.

"This is the second time in an hour that you have passed out! This isn't normal, Jesus!" Her voice cracked as she realized how bad this could actually be.

Mariana's sobs pulled her out of the scenarios flooding her head. "Mari, my love. I need you to breathe. Jesus is gonna be ok but I need you to tell me what happened." She said in a more stern voice, though she made sure to keep it full of love.

This time, Mariana inhaled deeply and let out a shaky breath. "I went to talk to Jesus after downstairs and when I opened his door, he was jogging in place and doing squats and I dono working out a lot." She sniffled before going on. "Then all of a sudden, his eyes rolled back and he fell to the ground. I don't know what happened! I don't know why! Jesus please you have to be ok!" Mariana's tears started up again and Stef held her with her free arm.

"Umm" Callie's voice came from the doorway where she stood with three cups of water.

"Oh, thank you, love." Stef said quickly.

Callie placed the waters on the ground by Mariana and bit her nail. "Lena said she is on her way right now. She should be here in less than 10 minutes." Callie informed her foster mother.

"Thank you so much." Stef said as she released her daughter long enough to grab one of the waters and use both hands to help her son sit up slightly and drink. As she took the water away from her son's lips so he could breathe, she looked over her shoulder at her daughter. "Mariana. Drink some water." She instructed before turning back to her son.

Stef was relieved when she heard the girl slowly drink the water.

"Thank you, my love." Stef praised.

It took Jesus slightly longer, but he finally finished all of his water and some of Stef's water. As he gulped down the cool liquid, he gasped for air, as if drinking water was taking all of the energy out of him.

"Ok, Jesus. I need you to tell me what is going on." She said in a firm voice. She wasn't going to take anymore half-assed answers; this was really beginning to scare her. "Jesus!" She added when her son didn't say anything.

When he still didn't answer, she grew frustrated. "You know I'm gonna find out one way or another!" She wanted him to realize that he couldn't hide whatever was going on.

"Mariana leave." Jesus finally muttered.

"What? No way!" The girl shot back.

"Mariana, love go to your room with Callie for just a little bit." Stef said gently, but with authority. She knew her daughter's feelings were already hurt and the last thing she wanted was to leave her twin, but if it was going to help Jesus talk, she knew it needed to happen.

"No, mom! I'm not leaving him!" Mariana argued, her shaking voice lessening the assertiveness of her voice.

"Mariana! I'm not gonna tell you again!" Stef said in a frustrated tone. "Please baby." She added, with a softer tone, knowing this was just as hard on her daughter.

"Mama's gonna be home soon. We can wait for her at the door and you can bring her back up when she gets here." Stef tried another approach.

Choking back a sob, the teenager stood up. "Fine. Whatever. I don't even care." She muttered as she left the room, Callie following her.

Stef sighed in relief and sadness.

She turned to give her full attention to her son and gave him a look of no-nonsense. "Ok. Talk." She commanded.

Jesus inhaled deeply, he was glad that he had time to think up a convincing explanation to explain everything while keeping him out of the emergency room. "I haven't been feeling well but I didn't want to miss practice because there's a really big meet coming up and I can't miss that!" He tried his best to convince his mother.

Stef looked at him with question in her eyes. "When did you start feeling sick?" She asked as she put her hand over his forehead to check for a fever.

"Uhh like this morning." He explained. "So that's why I wasn't really hungry and got light headed at practice." He concluded, the lie coming together in his head as he spoke it out loud.

Stef still had a feeling in her gut that it was something more. "When Mama gets home, the three of us are going to talk." She explained.

"What? Why? I'm just sick! We don't have to talk about it!" Jesus said, pushing himself to sit up.

Just then, Stef felt her hand brush up against something plastic-like. "What is this?" She asked as she looked down. Before Jesus could pull his ridden shirt back down, Stef realized what her son was doing. "Jesus Adams Foster are you bagging?"

**AN 2: There will be a part 2. Also, for those of you who don't know, bagging is when someone puts a garbage bag on his or her body under clothes. It is a way to lose a lot of weight in a short amount of time, but it is very dangerous. **


	13. Weight Class Part 2

**Part 2! Enjoy! **

"Jesus!" Stef repeated as she lifted her son's shirt to confirm what she feared.

Jesus remained silent. He knew he wouldn't be able to talk his way out of this one.

"Sweatheart why?" Stef asked suddenly, her voice full of concern.

Jesus kept his gaze away from his mother and continued to stay silent.

"Do you know how dangerous this is?!" Stef continued, her voice picking up volume. She didn't know how to go about handling this the right way, but she figured giving him the hard facts could scare him into realizing how severe this was. "Jesus! Do you understand you could kill yourself!" She yelled, choking on a sob when she spoke the last few words. Her baby boy.

Jesus kept his eyes closed. He knew if he opened them, he wouldn't be able to keep calm under his mother's gaze.

Stef sighed in frustration when Jesus continued to ignore her. She knew she needed to take some time to collect her thoughts and get her emotions in check, but Lena was still 5 minutes away.

"Uhh hey Stef." Jude's small voice grabbed the woman's attention. She tried her hardest to smile at the boy. "What is it, my love?"

"Callie told me to tell you she and Mariana went for a walk." He informed the blonde, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

Stef nodded. She trusted Callie with Mariana and knew the younger girl needed some time to process. "Thank you, baby for telling me." She said with a small smile. "Could you wait downstairs for mama and let me know when she pulls into the driveway?" She asked, trying to keep her voice even.

Jude nodded and took off to complete his task.

Stef looked down at her son whose eyes were closed, but she knew he was just avoiding her look. She brushed away some of the hairs from his forehead and kissed his forehead. "My sweet baby boy." She whispered. "You're gonna be ok."

Stef continued to hold her son's upper body and whisper into his ear until Lena arrived. She knew she wouldn't be able to get him up herself, and this was the only thing she could do that made her feel like she was doing something helpful for her son.

At Jude's announcement that Lena had pulled into the driveway, Stef shifted her weight in order to get a better look at her son. "Jesus." She stated gently, waiting for a moment before continuing. "Can you please open your eyes for me?" She asked. She had been keeping a close eye on his breathing and heart rate while they waited, but she hadn't pushed him to look at her. After a few more moments, Stef raised her voice slightly. "Jesus! Now please." She commanded and waited for her son to comply.

"Jesus Adams Foster!" This time, her voice was laced with worry. "You need to look at me now!" She practically yelled.

"Stef."

The blonde looked up with tears brimming her eyes. She gave her wife a look of pleading and Lena understood that she needed help. Lena nodded and kneeled down next to her wife and son. She gently put her hand on the boy's forehead and exhaled deeply.

"Jesus, honey. It's mama. Can you look at me for just a minute?" She asked.

Lena had something about her that made her kids obey. Maybe it was her gently tone or the fact that they never wanted to disappoint her, but nevertheless, Jesus opened his eyes and looked hesitantly at his mother who was now looking over him. "Hi, sweetie." Lena said with a small smile. "How are you feeling?" She asked, not knowing the extent of what had happened once he had gotten home except that he had passed out again.

Jesus avoided his gaze once more and Stef knew that they weren't going to get very far talking to him, and they needed to get him to a hospital.

"Ok. Jesus we're gonna help you up. We're taking you to get checked at the hospital. You are dehydrated and I'm guessing you haven't eaten in a while." Stef stated. She had slowly been putting the pieces together in her head.

"No!" Jesus finally spoke and his voice sounded scratchy, but after he cleared his throat, his words were more audible. "Please I'm fine. I just need to get something to eat really quick. I'll be fine I promise." He pleaded. He hadn't though his plan all the way through and hadn't thought of what he was going to say if his moms found out.

"Jesus! You've been bagging! And I'm guessing skipping meals. This isn't healthy!" Stef responded, fearing for her son's safety.

"I'm fine, mom. It's just until weight check-in." He explained, thinking that his mom was blowing this way out of proportion.

Stef sighed and looked at her wife for support.

Lena knew she needed to be the one to speak. She took her son's hand and smiled slightly down at him. "Honey, we love you way too much to let you continue to do this." She explained gently.

"I'm fine. I won't do it again." Jesus grumbled and tried to pull away from his mother.

Lena sighed and shook her head. "Sweetie, we love you too much to just pretend like it never happened." She continued.

"I'm sorry." Jesus whispered, keeping his eyes looking down, afraid to look at either of his mothers.

"Come on, baby. We're taking you to the hospital." Stef said, knowing she needed to be the strong one at the moment.

"Please! Please don't take me to the hospital!" Jesus pleaded as Stef shifted her son's weight to the side so she could stand up.

The two women tried to pull their son up off of the ground so they could assist him to the car, but he was making everything difficult. Finally, after a few minutes of struggling, Stef exhaled deeply and knelt in front of her son, who had only let them pull him into a sitting position on the floor.

"Jesus!" Stef said, her voice firm, but with a hint of worry in it. "Please help us out. I don't want to call an ambulance, but I will if that's what it takes to get you to the hospital." She said, her voice cracking.

"I don't see why I can't just drink water here." Jesus replied,

"You passed out twice within a half hour, Jesus! Don't you get that?" Stef yelled, looking down at her son with questioning eyes.

"Stef-" Lena began to try and calm her wife down, but the blonde quickly recanted.

"No! Lena!" She responded, running a hand through her hair. "He doesn't get to get off easily!" She continued, her voice growing quieter. "This is not healthy. I've seen kids die from bagging." She concluded with a whisper and sat on the bed, angrily wiping tears from her eyes.

It took his mother breaking down for him to realize just how bad the situation was. He knew that her normally hard shell didn't break easily and it made him feel worse that he was the one breaking it. He looked up at Lena and nodded before starting to pull himself up.

Stef looked up at the movement, sniffled quickly, and walked over towards her son to help steady him once he stood up. "Thank you, my love." She whispered to him as she and Lena walked him out of the room.


	14. Getting The Twins Part 2

**Part 2 of "Getting the twins"**

**Keep requests coming! **

**Thanks for reading! **

"Are they out?" Stef whispered to her wife who was still sitting in the back of the car next to their newest foster daughter. Brandon had fallen asleep after being in the car for about a half hour, which was typical for the 6-year-old.

Lena looked at the little girl next to her and then at the girl's twin. She smiled at Mariana, who was still awake. "Well, Jesus is out. But our little princess is still awake." Lena informed her wife as she winked at the girl.

"We're almost home, sweetie" Stef said as she glanced back through the mirror. They had been on the road for over an hour and a half and Stef was about to get off the highway to make it the last 15 minutes back.

Stef waited for a response, though she truly didn't expect one. After a few moments of silence, Lena smiled and squeezed the girl's hand. "Mari, love what would you like for dinner?" She was hoping to get the girl to say something. But, after Lena asked the question and turned to look at the girl, her brown eyes filled with tears and she shrank back further into her car seat.

"It's ok, sweetie. We can pick something when we get home, how does that sound?" She asked, smiling sadly at the frightened little girl.

Lena sighed at the lack of response and leaned her head on the seat. She knew it would take a while to gain the trust of a foster child, but she had a feeling it was going to be a lot more difficult with Mariana. Her heart broke as she thought back to her file and everything she had been through in her short little life. Reminding herself of what she and Stef could provide to the girl and her twin was what kept her going and forced her to push harder to bring comfort to their two newest family members.

* * *

"Are we home?" A sleepy Brandon asked as Stef began to unbuckle him from his booster.

"Yup, buddy. We're home. And I need you to help mommy and carry the bag of toys in. You think you could do that for me?" She asked as she set the boy down on the ground and grabbed the bag from the floor of the car.

"Yes I can!" Brandon responded with a smile. He loved being a helper- which Stef and Lena used for their advantage often.

"Good boy." Stef praised as she handed her son the bag. "Just wait right here and I'll walk with you to open the front door." She continued as she climbed into the back of the car. Jesus was still sleeping and Stef was planning on just carrying him inside.

"Hi, my love!" She whispered to the Latina, who still hadn't closed her eyes. Stef winked at the girl, and even with no response, she continued towards her younger boy. "Jesus we're home." She whispered, deciding to tell the boy what she was doing before she actually did it to ensure he was aware. "I'm gonna unbuckle you and carry you inside, ok?" She continued and waited for an acknowledgment.

Jesus began to stir and his eyes slowly opened. He blinked them a few times before smiling at Stef.

"I'm gonna unbuckle you and take you inside, ok?" Stef asked again and this time she was rewarded with a slight nod of the still exhausted boy's head. Smiling, Stef unbuckled the boy and carefully lifted him out of the carseat. She had a little difficulty backing out of the backseat, but eventually was able to get out, with Jesus in her arms, who had managed to fall back asleep.

Lena smiled at her wife. She knew that these two kids were the missing pieces to their family.

As soon as Stef began to walk towards the house, Lena could sense Mariana beginning to panic. She figured that the twins had not been apart for very long and from her behavior, it seemed that Mariana relied heavily on her brother. In an attempt to relax the girl, Lena decided to follow her wife in.

"Ready to go inside, sweetie?" Lena asked as she unbuckled her own seat. The young girl nodded eagerly but did not move until Lena had gotten into a position where she was in front of the girl. Mirroring her wife's technique of explaining what she was doing before doing it, in order to bring ease to her foster daughter, Lena waited before reaching over towards the booster. "I'm gonna unbuckle you, ok my love?" She asked and waited for a faint nod before unstrapping the girl. Even with the warning, Mariana flinched slightly and closed her eyes.

Lena backed out of the car and resettled the girl on her hip before smiling. "Let's go inside! I'll bet Jesus is waiting for you so you can both see your new rooms!" Lena exclaimed.

Mariana's response was to rest her head on the woman's shoulder and shove her thumb into her mouth.

* * *

"Brandon, slow down." Stef's voice echoed through the house as Lena opened the front door.

"But mommy!" Lena could hear Brandon whine.

"Oh look! Mama and Mariana are here!" Stef announced as she peeked towards the front door.

Within seconds, Brandon ran down from the kitchen towards Lena with Jesus following close behind.

"Slow down, buddy." Lena warned, holding out her arm to halt the boy.

"Mommy said we can show Jesus and Mariana their rooms when you came inside. Can we? Please? Come on!" Brandon grabbed Lena's free arm and began to pull her up the stairs while talking a mile a minute.

"Gimmie just a second, B." Lena said with a slight chuckle. She was happy that Brandon was taking so well to the twins.

"But mommy said!" Brandon began before Stef intervened.

"Why don't you and Jesus and I go on upstairs and Mama and Mariana will meet us there?" Stef suggested. She knew that typically they didn't condone whining, but Brandon was so excited that it was understandable. He had been waiting for a long time to have someone to play with him and to share his toys with.

"Ok!" Brandon yelled as he grabbed Jesus's hand this time and made his way back to the stairs. "Come on, 'Zues!" He exclaimed and the two boys made their way up the stairs, Stef following close behind.

Lena waited for her wife and sons to make it up the stairs before continuing to walk into the kitchen, Mariana still on her hip.

Hoping to put some of the snacks away before heading upstairs, Lena shifted the girl on her hip and bent her head in the attempt to meet the young girl's eyes. "Mari, sweetie. I'm gonna put you down for a minute so I can put these snacks away, ok?" She asked as she lowered the girl towards the ground.

With only a slight whimper, the Latina tightened her grip on Lena and buried her head further into the women's chest.

Lena sighed and stood back up, the young girl still in her arms. The snacks could wait.

"You know what?" Lena asked and waited for the girl's interest to perk. Finally, she looked up with big brown wondering eyes. Lena smiled before continuing. "I think there is a princess room upstairs waiting for you."

At the word princess, the young girl smiled slightly- though it was the happiest she looked since they met up with her and Jesus, so Lena took what she could get.

"Wanna go see it?" Lena asked.

The girl quickly nodded her head before hiding her face in Lena's curls. She woman smiled and kissed the girl slightly on the head before heading upstairs, happy that Mariana had shown some interest.

* * *

"Remember, Brandon. These are Jesus' toys. Yours are in your room." Stef explained to the 6 year old who was going through the bins of assorted toys they had bought for their new son.

"But he has to share!" Brandon argued.

"You are right but you need to ask first." Stef reminded him. She was waiting for the first argument to begin- but she was pleasently surprised it was only one child and it was about something easily fixable.

"You can play wif toys." Jesus offered- hoping to please his new foster family.

Brandon smiled and went to grab a train before Stef stopped him. "What do you say?"

"Thank you!" Brandon responded quickly before continuing to play with the toy he had his eye on earlier.

Stef smiled at her new foster son. "Thank you, sweetie. That was very nice of you!" She praised.

Jesus beamed at the compliment and then a look of question covered his face. He eyes the bucket of toys, but didn't move.

Smiling gently, Stef said "Go ahead and play with your toys." Her smile widened when the boy lunged at the toys and let out a small giggle of happiness.

"Well we can see Jesus' room first." Stef heard her wife say moments before she walked into the room with Mariana sill glued to her hip.

"Hermana!" Jesus exclaimed from his place on the floor.

"Would you like to go play with Jesus and Brandon?" Lena asked, hoping the girl would be ok if she was with her brother.

A hesitant traveling of the eyes caused Stef to speak up. "We will be in the room the whole time. Go have fun, sweets!"

Finally, the girl loosened her grip on Lena and the woman knelt down, gently releasing the tiny Latina to the ground.

"Jesus why don't you show your sister some of your new toys?" Stef suggested.

"Hermana! Aqui!" Jesus responded and walked over, grabbed his sister's arm and dragged her over to where he and Brandon had been playing.

Lena looked up at Stef, who had sat down on the boy's new bed. Waiting just another moment for the girl to settle, Lena stood up to join the blonde.

Stef ran her hand up and down her wife's back and they had a silent conversation. This is what they had dreamt about. This was what they had always wanted. Their family was finally complete.

* * *

Though the night started out nice, it took only until dinner for things to become difficult.

Lena and Stef decided on pizza for dinner, hoping it would be liked by both twins and it would be the easiest to deal with. Neither one wanted to cook and clean dinner. However, as soon as Lena went to call the pizza place, Mariana's eyes widened and tears formed.

"I'm gonna order some pizza for us!" Lena explained, looking down at the girl.

"Lena will be right back, sweetie. You can keep playing!" Stef continued with a smile.

However, the girl was set in her decision. She put down the toy she had been playing with and scooted back towards the corner, pulled her knees up to her chest, and buried her head.

The moms looked at one another and sighed, this was going to be difficult.

"Hey Mariana! How about this? How about while Lena orders the pizza, we can check out your room!" Stef suggested hoping it would excite the girl. However, the only response she got was a shake of the head indicating she didn't want to move.

Stef sighed as she got on the ground and slowly crawled over to her foster could hear the girl sniffling- trying to hold back her tears. "Mariana, sweetie." She said quietly, hoping she wouldn't frighten the girl. When she received no response, Stef continued. "Why don't you want to go see your new room?" Stef asked. At the silence, Stef moved closer and ducked her head down slightly. "Can you look at me, love?" She asked gently.

Finally, Mariana lifted her head and Stef noted the large tears that were rolling down the girl's face.

"Oh sweetie. You're ok." Stef cooed and reached her arms out towards the girl. Mariana quickly gasped and pushed herself away from Stef, only getting onto her feet when she saw Lena. She quickly ran to the woman and latched on to her leg.

Lena looked down at the girl and then at Stef, whose face looked slightly hurt but more sad.

"You're ok, Mari." Lena said as she stroked the girl's dark hair. She could feel the tears begin to soak the bottom of her pants. Quickly, she handed the phone and the pizza menu to Stef before reaching down and lifting the crying girl into her arms. "It's ok. Shhh you're ok." Lena whispered as she rubbed the girl's back gently.

"Come on, boys. You can help me pick out what kind of pizza to get." Stef said, knowing Lena wanted to talk to Mariana and it would be easier if there wasn't an audience.

"It ok, hermana." Jesus said quietly as he stood up and walked over towards Stef.

At the sound of her brother's voice, Mariana looked at Jesus and more tears spilled down her cheeks.

"Come on, loves." Stef said gently as she looked sadly at her wife and new daughter who was apparently afraid of her.

Once Stef and the boys left the room, Lena sat back down on Jesus' bed and tried to get Mariana to look at her. "Sweetie, can you look at me?" She asked gently.

At the lack of response, Lena pushed the girl's body slightly away from her own so she would have no choice but to look at her. "Mariana you're safe here. You're ok." Lena said in a loving but firm voice. She wanted the girl to actually believe her.

"Can you tell me what you are afraid of?" Lena asked, hoping to get the girl to say something; anything.

Before Mariana had a chance to even think about a response, a loud bang filled the house. The Latina screamed- indicating that she did in fact have a voice- and jumped off of Lena's lap. She ran into the closet before Lena could register what had happened. She heard Stef's footsteps coming quickly up the stairs and she soon peaked her head in. "I'm sorry! Brandon knocked over a chair that had some books on it!" She began, but as she looked at Lena, she quickly realized that the woman was alone. "Where is Mariana?" Stef asked.

Lena looked towards the closet and then back to Stef. "I don't know what to do." Lena confessed with a sigh of defeat. "She won't say anything and she is so frightened."

"I know, love." Stef consoled her wife. "Baby steps."

Lena nodded her head before getting off of the bed and walking towards the closet.

"I'm gonna finish ordering." Stef said before leaving. Both women knew that having only Lena in the room would make it easier on Mariana.

Lena sighed and made her way over towards the closet. She crouched down and knocked softly. "Mariana. You're ok. Brandon accidentally knocked over a chair. It's just me. Just Lena. Come on out, sweetie."

When she heard no movement, Lena opened the closet door slightly. She smiled sadly when she saw the young girl curled into a tight ball in the corner. Lena scooted herself into the closet. "Hi, sweetie." She said gently.

Finally, Mariana picked her head up. Large tears were still falling and all Lena wanted to do was take the girl into her arms and never let her go.

Deciding to take another approach, Lena began to speak again. "We're going to eat dinner soon so I need you to come out from the closet so we can get ready. Do you think you can do that for me?"

Mariana sniffled but continued to stare.

"I'll be there with you the whole time, sweetie." Lena promised before beginning to scoot out of the closet- hoping the girl would mirror her.

When the girl still didn't move, Lena sighed and looked down. "Mariana, love I know you are scared. And it's ok to be afraid a little. But I promise that you are safe here. You see Jesus having fun with Brandon and Stef. He wouldn't let you be in danger, would he?" Lena asked, knowing the girl depended on her brother for everything and had most likely protected her before.

Lena could see the brunette nod slightly and she continued. "Ok so come on out with me. We can wash our hands and then see your princess room before we go downstairs for dinner." Lena reached a hand down to the girl.

After a moment of hesitation, Mariana reached up and grabbed Lena's hand, but she didn't move. She tugged slightly on the woman- silently asking her to stay.

Lena shook her head. "No, honey. We're going downstairs for dinner." Lena didn't want to reward the girl's frightened state. She knew it would be difficult, but the earlier she knew that she was safe, the better.

Lena had one more idea and she was praying that it would work.

"Ok. Well I'm going downstairs to have dinner with Brandon and Stef and Jesus." She pulled her hand away from the girl and began to walk to the door. Just like she thought, she heard tiny feet on the floor behind her and little arms wrap around her legs. Lena smiled to herself and bent down to pick up the girl. "Would you like to join us? I really hope you would!" She said and smiled. Mariana nodded her head slightly and snuggled down into Lena's hair. Smiling in satisfaction, Lena began to walk towards the stairs. She knew this clingy act could be difficult, but at least the girl was able to trust her.

* * *

Not long after Lena and Mariana washed their hands and got downstairs, Stef had the table set and both boys helping her set out the last of the napkins.

"Wow! Look at this table!" Lena exclaimed as she walked into the kitchen, Mariana on her hip. "Great work, boys!" She praised as she looked around.

"What? Just the boys?!" Stef faked a hurt voice which made the boys giggle.

"Mommy! Me and Jesus setted the table." Brandon said as he climbed up into his seat.

"You did?!" Stef pretended to be shocked and dramatically put her hand over her heart. "All by yourselves?! You two are amazing!" She scooped Jesus up and set him in his booster chair before tickling both boys.

Lena smiled as she walked over towards the second booster seat. However, as she tried to put Mariana into the seat, the girl clung tighter. "Mariana, sweetie you need to sit in your booster so we can eat dinner." Lena explained before trying again.

This time, Mariana whimpered and wrapped her legs tighter around Lena. Sighing and looking at Stef who shrugged her shoulders, Lena sat down in her own chair and turned Mariana around to face the table. "Just for tonight you can sit on my lap but when we eat, everyone gets to sit in their own chair, ok?" Lena explained as the girl tried to turn into Lena to hide.

Just as the boys began to sword fight with their forks- which Stef quickly put a stop to- the doorbell rang indicating that the pizza was there.

"I'll get it!" Brandon yelled as he scrambled down from his chair.

"Bran-!" Stef started but stopped when she saw he was already down and waiting for her. "Ok. Come on." She agreed and took his hand to get the pizza.

* * *

Dinner seemed so normal to the mothers who had only ever had three at the table. Brandon and Jesus talked about their lego towers that they wanted to build together after dinner and how much ice cream they could eat in one sitting. It made both moms smile to see their son bonding so well with their new member of the family.

"Have some pizza, sweetie!" Lena said as she took her own piece in her hands and began to eat in demonstration to the girl who hadn't touched her food.

Her response was to turn into Lena and burry her face into Lena's hair. Lena sighed and looked at Stef for help. They both shared a concerned look. So far, things with Mariana were much more difficult than they thought. They knew she was shy, but she had not said a word since they picked her up and now she wasn't eating.

"Is there something else you would like to eat?" Lena asked, hoping that she could get the girl to eat something. Mariana shook her head, still not looking up.

"Sweetheart you need to eat something or you could get sick!" Lena explained gently, her concern growing.

"Hermana! Necesitas comer!" Jesus whispered, telling his sister that she needed to eat.

At the sound of her brother's voice, Mariana looked up, tears pooling in her eyes. She shook her head at her brother before the tears silently fell.

"Ok. Well there is a surprise for anyone who eats all of their dinner." Stef said, hoping to spark some interest. It did spark interest- but not in Mariana.

"Where mommy?!" Brandon asked as he stood up on his chair.

"Umm no. We do not stand on our chairs, young man." Stef replied quickly and waited for her son to sit back down before continuing. "Well Lena and I thought it would be fun to go out for ice cream after dinner." Stef began but was interrupted by cheering from the boys. "But!" She continued. "Only if you are on your best behavior and finish your dinner." She looked over at Mariana as she explained the last part.

Lena shifted the girl in her arms and tried to make eye contact. "Did you hear that, love? Would you like some ice cream?" Lena asked gently.

Mariana slowly lifted her head and nodded.

Lena smiled at Stef before looking back down at the girl. "Can you eat some of your dinner for me and then we can get ice cream?" Lena continued.

After a few moments of waiting, the girl smiled and nodded her head before reaching over to grab a slice of pizza.

Lena and Stef both exhaled a breath they didn't know they were holding and smiled. They were going to be alright.


	15. Season 2 Finale Part 1

**I was asked to do the season finale scene a couple of times, so this is my take on it. It will be a 2 or 3 shot. **

**Enjoy and thanks for the reviews! 3**

* * *

Black. That was all Mariana could see when the car finally came to a stop.

Although she could only see black, she could hear. She could hear everything.

_Open your eyes. _Mariana told herself, trying to gain back her sight. Her eyelids felt heavy and after trying a few times, she frustratedly gave up. She tried to think back to what had happened.

_The car. _

_Anna. _

_Jesus. _

_Jesus! _Mariana suddenly found a new burst of energy to pry her eyes open and take in her surroundings. The top of the car had crunched down, almost fully ontop of her, making it impossible to move- though that didn't stop her from trying.

"AHHHHHH!" Mariana's scream startled herself as she tried to move, but a searing pain flooded her body. She tried to look around to see where her brother was, but as soon as she tried to move her neck, she was hit with another wave of pain. A sob racked her body and the pain continued.

Suddenly, Mariana began to panic. She was in so much pain that she couldn't think straight and she had no idea where her birth mother or twin were. Finally, she realized the only thing that was really working was her mouth. She inhaled deeply, pushing past the pain that she felt and let out a scream. Once she couldn't go any longer without taking a breath, she gulped in air and the tears began to fall.

_Help._

* * *

Stef sighed. She was so looking forward to celebrating Callie's news when she was called in on an emergency car accident. She told herself thatd take care of what needed to be done so she could quickly get back to her family.

Turning onto the street of the accident, Stef could hear the sounds of an ambulance and fire truck also approaching.

_Man this must be bad._ She thought to herself.

As she pulled up closer, her heart began to beat faster when she saw the state of the two cars. Pulling over to a complete stop, Stef's breathing picked up when she looked at the two cars. _No._ She thought to herself as she slowly got out of the car, taking time to determine if what she was seeing was really true.

_"Hey mom can Ana drive Jesus and me home?" _Stef remembered MAriana asking her after the dance competition.

_"Sure, sweets. But don't be late. We're having celebration cake!"_

_"Ohhh goodie! Thanks, mom! I love you!" _Stef recalled the pure excitement on her daughter's face as she leaned in to hug the young girl.

_"Love you too."_

Stef snapped out of her mini flashback as she walked closer to the cars and her eyes landed on the license plate.

_No. No. No no no no!_ She thought as she quickened her pace and made it to the car. She flashed her badge to a paramedic who was on his way over to the car as well. Suddenly, she heard a scream. A scream that she had heard often when the twins had first started living with them. A scream of terror and fright. A scream that came from her daughter.

"Mari!?" Stef yelled out, though the scream continued. Stef ran over to the back door of the car and tried to peak in, though it was difficult due to the way the car had been smashed.

The scream finally stopped, so Stef tried again. "Mariana!" She made her way over to the other side of the car in the hopes that she would have better access. When she got there, she stopped short at the sight.

"Jesus?" She called out to her son whose head was hanging out of the window, blood caked on his face. "Jesus? Baby." Stef said, quieter this time as she made her way towards her son. As she reached out to touch his face, she was pulled back by a paramedic.

"Officer don't touch him. We need to stabilize his head."

Stef was so wrapped up in the sight of her children that she forgot that she was there as an officer.

"Officer?" The paramedic asked, tilting his head in confusion as the blonde continued to simply stare at the boy.

Stef nodded and backed away, watching as the paramedic began to assess her son.

"Pulse is weak but there. Need a stretcher, brace, and fluids." He called out, causing Stef to release the breath she had been holding.

_He's alive._

"Mommy!" Mariana's plea pulled Stef out of her trance and she jumped into action, turning towards the back of the car.

There, pinned under the roof of the crushed car, covered in blood, was her baby girl.

"Mari, baby!" Stef cried out, hoping the girl would be able to hear her.

At the sound of her mother's voice, Mariana tried to turn her head, but screamed out in pain.

"Shhh baby. You're ok. Don't try to move." Stef explained as she looked around for another paramedic. "Mommy is right here, baby girl. We're gonna get you outa there." She assured her daughter.

Three other paramedics made their way towards Stef rolling two stretchers.

"Ma'am." One of them said gently placing a hand on Stef's shoulder. Having heard her talking to the girl, they all knew she was the mother to the children in the car and needed to be talked to like a parent, not like a police officer.

Stef looked up at the woman who smiled at her. "Is this your daughter?"

Stef nodded almost robotically as the paramedics began to assess the scene.

"Mommy!" Mariana's voice cut through Stef's heart and the mother turned her attention back to her daughter.

"Ma'am I know you want to help her, but you need to let us do our job." The paramedic said, trying to pull the blonde away from the car.

"Mommy where are you?!" Mariana called out again when she didn't hear a response.

"I'm right here, baby. Mariana I am right here!" Stef replied, almost forgetting that there was a paramedic holding onto her arm.

"Mariana." The paramedic began, hoping to soothe both the girl and her mother. "My name is Lisa. I'm a paramedic. Can you hear me?"

"Yeah." a small voice responded.

"Ok sweetie. My friends and I are gonna get you out of there but you're gonna need to help us out. You think you can do that?" She asked.

"Where's my mommy?" Her voice sounded small.

"She is waiting right here for you. So let's get you out so you can see her, ok?" The paramedic asked gently.

"Ok."

"Great job, sweetie!"

As the paramedic began to ask the young girl questions in order to best decide how to get her out, Stef felt a buzzing in her pocket. Slowly, hahnds trembling, she pulled out her phone and looked down at the screen.

_Did you make it to the scene? Will you be home by dinner?_ Stef sighed at her wife's text but didn't reply. She wanted to have something more to tell her when she finally called her- knowing the mother would want to be here, but still thinking about three other children.

"Ma'am?" Stef was pulled out of her thoughts as Lisa walked back over to her.

"Sorry what?" Stef tried to concentrate.

"I asked if you knew the driver. Was she related to you?" Lisa asked gently.

_Knew? Was?_ Stef swallowed thickly. "Uhh yeah. She uhh.." She didn't really want to explain the relationship at the moment. "Is she ok?" She finally asked.

Lisa closed her eyes for a moment and looked back up at Stef with remorse.

That's all Stef needed to know to understand that Ana didn't make it.

But Stef couldn't focus on her right now. She needed to focus on her children.

"Officer?" Stef was once again pulled out of her dazy thoughts by the paramedic.

"Hmm?"

"I said we're taking your son in the first ambulance now. Would you like to go with him or stay with your daughter?"

Stef looked back and forth at her two children. She wished Lena was there with her to help her think straight. However, Mariana's sudden cry made her decision. "I'm going to stay here. I'll tell my wife to meet the ambulance at the hospital." She determined- knowing she now had to tell her wife the terrible news.

"Alright." Lisa answered and gave the ok to the ambulance driver before walking back towards Mariana. "I'm gonna need you to stand back so we can get the jaws of life in here." She said gently, knowing that the mother was already terrified.

Stef nodded before walking over towards the car to reassure her daughter before calling her wife. "Mariana, baby." Stef called out.

"Mommy I'm scared! Please- please mommy help me!" Mariana begged and Stef's heart broke.

"Baby the paramedics are gonna get you out and I'm gonna call Mama. Then we're all going to go see Jesus, ok?" Stef tried to use the names of her family in order for the girl to comply.

"Mommyyyy" Mariana wailed- breaking Stef's heart even more.

"My sweet girl." Stef said, tears now flowing down her cheeks, "I'll be right here when they're done." She said before looking at Lisa to instruct her to continue. She knew they needed to work fast so she could physically get to her daughter.

Once Lisa and the rest of the paramedics began to work on getting Mariana out, Stef pulled out her phone. She knew this was going to be a difficult call and that Lena would want to be with Mariana, but truthfully, she needed her to be at the hospital in case anything happened with Jesus. She would never forgive herself if anything happened to him and no one was there.

* * *

"Hey babe! You coming home already?" Lena answered the phone happily after seeing her wife's name on the screen. Little did she know that happiness would soon be gone.

"Uhh no. I... um" Stef stammered. She hadn't thought out what she was going to actually say to her wife when she dialed her number.

"Stef? What's wrong?" Lena asked, stopping what she was doing and giving all of her attention to her wife. "Stefanie!" She exclaimed after only a moment of science, because it felt like ages.

"Uhhh there.. there was a car accident." Stef began, knowing she just needed to continue in order to get it out without breaking down.

"Who?" Lena began but Stef continued.

"Mariana and Jesus." Stef heard Lena gasp but she continued to speak. "I dono how. Ana's dead. Jesus is on his way to the hospital now. I'm staying here with Mariana until they can get her out of the car. I need you to go to the hospital." Stef spoke quickly, hoping to keep her emotions at bay a little while longer.

"Wha... how... Oh my god." Lena stammered as she threw a hand over her mouth, feeling like she was about to be sick.

"Lena!" Stef raised her voice in order for her wife to hear her. "I know you're scared, but I have to stay here with Mari and that means I need you to go to the hospital with Jesus." Stef instructed, knowing she had to be the tough one at the moment.

"Ok." Lena replied quietly, trying to pull herself together at the sight of her other children entering the room after her outburst. "I love you. Tell Mari I love her and I'll be waiting for her." Lena ended before Stef could reply, not able to handle her wife's voice again without breaking down.

"Mom?" Jude was the first to speak after a few moments of silence.

Lena took a deep breath, wiped the tears that had fallen and turned to her children. "Ok. I don't want any of you to panic, but the twins were in a car accident."

As soon as the words left her mouth, she could see the tears forming in all of her children's eyes, making her own tears form once more.

"But mom said they're going to be ok. She is with Mariana and we need to go to the hospital to be with Jesus. Ok?" She continued as she angrily wiped her tears once more and mustered up a small smile. "Ok so come on." She continued as she grabbed her purse and started walking towards the front door.

Silently, the three children followed their mother, knowing it was best not to say anything, but taking comfort in one another as their emotions took over.


	16. The First Cut is the Deepest P1

**Hello! Sorry for the lack in updates! Life, ya know?**

**This one is my take on what happened with Mariana after Mat leaves to go on tour and she is left alone at the beach. It does ****involve self harm, so please take caution when reading. Also, this is a two or three shot. =]**

* * *

Mariana watched as Mat walked away from her. From her hopes of finally having sex. From her night that was meant to be memorable. As she wiped a tear from her eye, she thought back to the rest of the events from that week.

Jesus had gone off to boarding school. She was happy for him, but deep down, she wasn't ready to be so far away from him. Trying to distract herself from missing her twin, she tried to keep busy by helping Ana and her new baby sister. She thought she was actually building a relationship with her birth mother.

_But apparently she doesn't want me around either._ Mariana thought to herself as she wiped away more tears from her eyes.

She looked down at one of the healing scars on her arm from the car crash. She knew she was lucky- she could've lost some of the most important people in her life, and only walked away with a few scratches. But ever since that night, things felt off0 life at home was different. Stef and Lena constantly wanted to know where every child was at all times and they hardly let any of the kids out unless Stef drove them or they walked.

She understood wy they were being cautious, but it felt like every ounce of freedom and choice was slipping from her fingers. It was weird- that when she had fresh cuts, she felt something, but now, she felt nothing. She felt numb. She wanted to feel. She needed to feel. Mar didn't want her, Ana didn't need her, and Jesus was off living his life- a life without her.

Mariana felt around in the sand until her fingertips grazed a piece of glass from an old beer bottle. She felt the edges between her fingers and studied the sharp sides carefully.

_Just one._ Mariana convinced herself as she reached out her other hand and touched the inner part of her wrist. She grazed her fingers up her arm and reached the scars once more. She traced each scar as more tears fell. Slowly, she brought the piece of glass up to her wrist and pressed down.

At first, she felt nothing. But slowly, the slight sting of the glass sliding against her skin pulled her out of her numbness.

Slowly, she began to feel the pain she yearned for as her hand swiped her wrist at it's own will.

Mariana looked down as the blood from half a dozen cuts flowed down to her legs. Startled by the amount of cuts she didn't realize she made and the amount of blood that was beginning to form a pool, she dropped the piece of glass.

She couldn't move. She didn't know what to do. There had been times in the past where she had contemplated cutting, but until then, she had never acted upon it.

"Shit." Mariana mumbled to herself as she looked around for something to help stop the bleeding.

Occupied with her arm, the brunette didn't notice Callie make her way over to her.

The older girl needed a break. She was trying to be a normal kid- go to the dance like all the rest of her classmates, but after letting AJ stay in the drop-in-center against the rules she knew were in place, she needed some time alone.

"Mariana?"

The Latina froze. She recognized the voice as her sister's, but hadn't found her voice yet to respond.

Callie crinkled her forehead in confusion. She was pretty sure her sister could hear her.

Beginning to walk closer, she stopped suddenly when Mariana quickly turned further away from her and ruled herself into a ball.

"Mariana?" Callie tried again, sensing that something was wrong.

"Mariana! What's wrong?" This time, Callie demanded as she quickly made her way up wot where the girl was trying to hide herself.

"H... hey, Cal." Mariana finally found her voice as she covered her wrist with her sweater and tried to wipe away the blood that had previously fallen. The younger girl flinched with she felt a gently hand on her shoulder.

"Mariana turn around." Callie's soft voice caused the tears to flow form Mariana's eyes as a sob racked her body and she slowly turned towards her sister- head down in shame and guilt.

"Oh Mari!" Callie gasped with she took in the state of the younger girl. "What happened?"

The sobs from the younger girl prevented any words to come out, so Callie simply took the girl into her arms and held her.

* * *

After a few minutes of silence, Callie spoke; her head staring off into space as she addressed her sister. "You do know I need to tell your moms, right?"

Mariana's head snapped up and her eyes turned cold as she stared at the older girl. "What? No! Why? It was one time. It was stupid. It wasn't supposta go this far. You weren't ever supposta find out!" She began to ramble before Callie interrupted.

"Mari!" The girl stopped and looked at her older sister with pleading eyes.

"Callie. Please. Please don't tell moms."

Callie knew she needed to tell Stef and Lena. She knew from personal experience that this could get out of control quickly.

"Callie!" Mariana's sharp voice cut through her thoughts. She turned to face the younger brunette with a sad gaze on her face. "Promise me, Callie!" She pleaded- eyes pooling with tears.

"I..." Callie began, but was interrupted by her phone ringing. Thankful for the distraction, she held up her finger for Mariana to hold on as she answered the phone.

"Hello?"

_'Hi, love.'_

"Hey Lena."

_'Have you seen Mari? I thought she was coming to the dance after Ana's.'_ Lena responded, a hint of concern in her voice.

"Uhh yeah." She began before glancing down at her sister who had since then begun to stare off into space in deep thought. "Uhh Lena." Callie continued, turning away from the girl in order to gain some privacy.

_'What's wrong?'_ Lena asked. Callie could tell she was beginning to worry.

"Uhhh." Callie wove her fingers through her hair as she battled with her self as to whether or not to tell her about Mariana.

_'Callie. You're scaring me, love. What's going on?'_

Callie sighed as she made up her mind. "I need you." She exhaled deeply. "Mariana needs, uhhh can you come to the south side of the beach? By the first lifeguard deck?" She whispered as she stole a glance at the girl who was still staring off into space.

_'What happened?'_ Lena asked once more, hoping to get any sort of information as to why Callie was acting so strange.

"I'll tell you when you get here." She said, but didn't realize Mariana had snapped out of her trance and heard the end of the conversation.

"Are you kidding?" Mariana yelled. Tears streaming down her face.

"Mari!" Callie looked defeated as her sister gave her a look of distrust and hurt.

_'Callie. Stef and I are coming right now. Don;t move'_ The brunette barely heard Lena as she concentrated on her sister.

"I hate you." Mariana spat before turning away to hide the tears that were beginning to fall.

* * *

Lena looked around for Stef. The phone call, which had started out as an innocent quest to locate her youngest daughter, turned into a frantic panic of worry.

Spotting the blonde talking to one of the teachers helping chaperone, she tried to get her attention without making a scene.

"Stef." She said quickly, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet.

"Hi, my love!" Stef said with a smile that disappeared quickly when she saw the look of sheer panic on her wife's face. "What's wrong?"

"Can I talk to you?" Lena asked as she grabbed her wife's arm. "Excuse us." She stated towards the teacher.

Lena led Stef away from the students as Stef blindly followed with a confused look in her eyes.

"Lena! You're scaring me! What's going on?"

Lena took a deep breath and bit her bottom lip. "Callie just told me she... err Mariana needs... ummm she needs help." She explained before turning around to continue towards the location of her children.

"Lena!" Stef yelled as she hurried to catch up with the brunette. "What do you mean they need help?" Her heart rate began to pick up as thoughts of what could be happening began to form in her head.

"I dono, Stef!" Lena snapped and turned around with tears in her eyes. "I dono! Callie just... huh I just... she sounded scared. And I just have this feeling in the pit of my stomach!" She felt a lump form in her throat as s tear fell down her cheek. "And I..." She tried to continue, but a sob slipped out.

"Ok, baby. Ok. I'm sorry, my love." Stef said as she wrapped her arms around her wife. "Come on." She said, beginning to walk with LEna still close to her body. "Let's not worry before we know what happened." She concluded as the two hurried towards their daughters.

* * *

"Mariana!" Callie yelled as her sister tried to walk away from the older girl in anger.

"No! Leave me alone! I asked you not to tell! I'm fine!" She yelled and waver her arms in frustration before wincing from the pain of her still fresh cuts.

"Look at you! You aren't ok! Mariana I know this feeling. This feeling of lost hope and unhappiness. Hell I could write a book on it! This feeling, this feeling that you have that makes you want to do this" she pointed towards Mariana's wrists that she was trying to cover, "it won't just go away overnight! You have to talk about it!" Her voice softened as the tears began to fall.

Starting to understand what her sister was saying, Mariana dropped her head. But as Callie stepped forward to console her, she snapped back to the fact that soon her moms were going to find out.

_They are probably send me back to therapy._ She thought to herself. _I'm not going back to therapy._

As she turned to walk away again, she gave Callie one last look of betrayal before making her way away from the beach.

"Mariana!" Callie yelled as she looked down and saw her sister had left her sweater and purse. Quickly bending down to pick them up in order to chase after the brunette, she spotted the bloody piece of glade that had been used by her sister minutes prior. Callie's hand balled into a fist as she bit her knuckles to try and suppress a sob. This was all too familiar and she wanted to do anything to ensure that her sister didn't go through the same pain that she had. She knew deep down that telling Stef and Lena was the right decision, but it didn't make her feel any better at that moment.

Pulling herself out of her thoughts, and quickly remembering what she was doing, Callie grabbed the sweater, which was stained with blood spots, and her sister's purse. She took a deep breath of relief when she realized Mariana was walking and hadn't gotten very far.

"Callie?!" The voice of Lena somehow comforted her and frightened her at the same time. Slowly, she turned around and was met with the worried eyes of both moms. She knew she needed to fill them in, but she wasn't sure of what she should say and what she should leave for Mariana to say; if she would talk at all.

"Callie, love?" Stef's voice pulled the teen out of her thoughts and the blonde's thumb gently brushed away a stray tear. "Sweetie. What happened?" She asked in a stern but concerned manner.

"Where's Mariana?" Lena added, looking around and only seeing one of her daughters.

"I... she..." Callie suddenly couldn't find her voice. The various thoughts racing through her head were beginning to overwhelm her as she tried to sort out the information she needed to tell the two women in front of her.

Stef, sensing a panic attack, reached out and grabbed the girl's face, forcing her too look her in the eyes. "Sweets. I need you to breathe. That's it. Good job." She praised. "Now can you tell me where Mariana is?" She asked in a calm voice.

Still unable to speak, Callie pointed over towards the opposite side of the small building as she tried to suck in some air. "She... she..." She began but stopped as everything around her began to spin.

"Callie! Sit down for me, love." Stef instructed as she helped the girl onto the sand. "You're ok. Lena is going to go find Mariana. I just need you to breathe for me."

Nodding her head, Lena began to walk around the building when Callie's voice flooded her ears.

"She cut herself."

**Part 2 ****coming soon!**


	17. AN- New longer story!

**Hello readers! So I got a lot of feedback for the car accident end of season 2 one shot and I decided to make it an individual story. So, you can find it under ****_In the Blink of an Eye!_**

**I will be continuing ****_The First Cut is the Deepest_**** and other one/ two shots on here! **

**Thanks for reading and reviewing! **

**P.S. Chapter 2 is now up on the other story! **


	18. The First Cut is the Deepest P2

**Part 2. Again warning of talk of self harm. **

"She cut herself!"

Lena froze. Her eyes closed as she inhaled deeply. She turned around and was met with the worried eyes of her wife. Quickly, she made her way over to the blonde and gave her a look that Stef understood perfectly.

The blonde stood up, kissed Callie on the side of the head before kissing Lena on the lips and hurried after her youngest daughter. Both moms knew Stef would be able to stay stronger when talking to Mariana, and Lena could be able to console Callie better, as Stef's mama tiger was coming out and she needed to take action.

Lena watched as her wife began after her younger daughter before exhaling deeply and turning to gain some sort of understanding from her oldest.

* * *

"Mariana." Stef said as she chased after the brunette. "Mariana stop!" Stef yelled, her tone mixing with worry and fear.

Finally, the girl stopped, but remain facing away from her mom. Stef exhaled in relief and quickly caught up.

"Come here, my baby."

Stef's words surprised Mariana. She had half expected her mother to begin yelling, but when she instead pulled her into her strong arms, the teen came apart. Hot tears soaked Stef's shirt as Stef held and rocked her daughter while whispering soft affirmations into her ear.

After Mariana's breathing began to slow down, Stef pushed back slightly and took her daughter's face into her hands- knowing she needed to discuss the issue at hand. The blonde smiled sadly as she feared into her daughter's dark brown eyes. They were filled with sadness, worry, frustration and guilt. "Can you tell me what happened?" She finally asked as she brushed away some stray tears from her daughter's cheek.

Mariana opened and closed her mouth but couldn't pull together a complete sentence. With obvious frustration, the teen looked down and started picking at her fresh cuts.

Stef quickly, but gently, grabbed child of her daughter's hands and kissed them softly before tilting her head in order to capture the eyesight of the girl.

"Look at my, my baby." She coaxed, waiting until big brown eyes met her own. "Just breathe. It's ok. I'm not mad. Mama is not mad. Callie is not mad." Stef wanted to reassure her daughter that she was not being punished. "But this" she continued, lifting the girl's hands, which were still in her own, "is something we need to talk about." She concluded.

"I know." Mariana answered, eyes averting her mother's once more.

Stef could tell that they weren't going to get very far outside on the school's beach, so she used her finger to life up her daughter's chin. "Let's go find Mama and Callie and go home, yes?" She asked, though it wasn't an option.

Mariana nodded but remained still as she realized she was probably going to have to go to therapy again and her moms would constantly worry. _Here I a mad a burden again._ The girl thought to herself as se shoulders shagged in defeat.

"Mari?" Stef called her daughter's name again as she realized the girl was deep in thought and didn't hear her. Stef snaked her arm around her daughter's shoulders and immediately felt the teen shaking. She sighed before looking down and kissing the girl's head.

"It's going to be ok, my love." She reassured the girl. "We will get you through this."

Mariana nodded and buried her face once again into her mother's shirt as the tears poured out.

"Oh, my love. My sweet, sweet love." Stef rocked her daughter and rubbed soothing patterns on her back. She wanted to hold her daughter, but she knew she needed to check on the severity of the cuts before any sort of infection, so Stef pulled away after a moment.

"Come on. Mama and Callie are waiting for us."

Reluctantly, Mariana allowed her mother to lead her back to the beach.

* * *

"Mom had her." Lena assured her daughter as she girl tried to get up and follow her sister after she took off. "come here, sweetheart." she added gently, guiding Callie away from the sight of where Stef had Mariana.

Once out of sight of the other two women, Lena pulled Callie into a tight embrace. She felt the teen tense up at first, but the reciprocate the affection.

Finally able to breathe now that her moms were there, Callie was able to take in the event. _Mariana cut herself._ She thought, biting her lip as she recalled the previous minutes. _She asked me not to tell. _Was her next thought. _I'm a terrible sister. _

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't register when Lena pulled away from the hug in order to look at her daughter.

Lena tilted her head as she tried to understand what was going through her daughter's head. Finally, Callie focused on her surroundings and blushed when she saw Lena's concerning look. Lena waited for the girl to keep eye contact before beginning to talk.

"First off, thank you for calling me." she said, hoping that she did a good thing. At this praise, the teen looked back down, still feeling guilty.

"Hey look at me." Lena coaxed as she lifted her daughter's chin up with her finger. "I don't care what Mariana asked you to do, or not to do" Lena said, raising her eyebrows as she knew what the girl was thinking. "Mom and I..." she paused and echoed deeply, "we are thankful that you called us." She finished with a teary-eyed smile.

Callie began to fight, as she was at a loss as to what to say or do. Realizing that the teen wasn't going to talk, Lena continued. "Do you know..." she exhaled again, dreading this conversation. "Uhh know what happened exactly?"

This time, it was Callie who exhaled. She was still toying with how much she should disclose, though in all honesty, she didn't know much. "Uhhh... I don't wally know much more than you" she began and Lena set her fill attention to the girl.

"That's ok, just tell me what happened from when you got here to when you called me."

Callie nodded and continued talking. "Well I uhh found her just sitting here. Uhh and when I tried to talk to her, she uhh she just turned away." Lena nodded to indicate that she was listening and that Callie should continue. "When I got closer, I saw..." she looked down "I saw the blood." Her voice softened and Lena had to strain to hear. Callie heard Lena's attempt to stifle a sob, but didn't look up- knowing she would break down if she did. "Then I uhh I found the uhhh..." thoughts of her past came flooding back and she found it becoming harder to breathe.

Suddenly, Callie felt herself being wrapped into a hug. She melted into the loving arms of her mom.

"It's ok, honey." Lena assured her daughter. "What did you find?" she asked, hoping if she got just one more added piece of information, it would help her understanding of the situation.

Unable to form words, Callie simply lifter her hand and placed the piece of glass in Lena's hand, hoping she would make the connection.

Lena's forehead crinkled in confusion as she looked down at what Callie had placed in her hand. However, it only took her a moment to realize what it was and more importantly, what it had been used for.

_I piece of glass?! _ Lena thought to herself as she tried to calm her thoughts. _A random piece of glass that could have come from anywhere?!_ At this point, she was beginning to get mad, but quickly remembered the bigger picture. Callie's sobs pulled her out of her thoughts and she tightened her grip on the girl. "Ok, sweetie. You're ok. Mari is going to be ok."

Callie began feeling overwhelmed, to the point where it felt as though her throat was closing up. Frantically, she pushed herself out of Lena's grasp and tried to take in a full breath.

Shocked by the sudden change in her daughter, Lena watched as the girl struggled to breathe. She knew that Callie was protective of Mariana, but this reaction seemed to be linked to something more, though at the moment, she didn't have time to figure out what. Quickly, Lena made her way over to the teen, but refrained from touching her.

"Breathe, Cal. Just breathe. You're ok."

Callie's head was spinning. All of her past experiences with self harm were bubbling up into her brain and it was becoming too much. _Not Mariana. I can't... I need to help her._ She scolded herself as she tried to stay strong in order to help her sister, but the anxiety and pain was pushing her further down.

Reaching the point of full panic, Callie leaned against the side of the small building and slid down to the ground, holding her head in her hands and lowering her head in between her legs. "Can't... Br... Bre..." She gasped as her chest tightened even more.

Lena was frozen. She was at a loss as to what to do to help her daughter. She knew Callie typically pulled away from physical touch, and at this point, she couldn't even hear verbal help. Finally, she decided to take a chance and quickly squatted in front of the girl.

"Callie. Look at me." She said, forcefully, but with the kindness that Lena always showed. "Good. Now follow my breathing." She instructed. "That's great, honey. Come on. Slow your breathing down." Lena continued as the teen began to inhale deeper.

After a few more moments, Callie was able to breath regularly and she pulled her head up, her eyes full of shame. "Sorry" She mumbled as Lena chuckled quietly and brushed hair away from the girl's face.

"What do you have to be sorry for? You're ok." Lena made sure the girl understood her words before standing up, bringing the girl up with her.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Lena asked quietly after a moment of silence.

Just as Callie opened her mouth to respond, the two brunettes heard soft talking and soon Stef and Mariana's figures appeared.

"Ready?" Stef asked, indicating that the girl did not want to talk at that moment.

Lena nodded, getting the message. "Yup. Right, Cal?" She added, looking at the girl.

Callie looked at Mariana, who was clinging to Stef's side and refusing to look her way, and nodded.

The four women slowly began their walk back home; each lost in their own thoughts as to what happened and what was coming.


	19. Getting The Twins Part 3

**I wanted to continue with this story of a young Brandon, Jesus and Mariana. Here is the third part.**

It took Mariana a half hour to eat half of a piece of pizza. The boys had finished eating 10 minutes prior and were wiggling in their chairs as they waited for the last family member to be finished so they could get ice cream.

Finally, Mariana put down the half eaten and now cold slice of pizza and looked down. Stef and Lena had a feeling that the girl wanted to be done, but didn't want to get in trouble for it.

"You full, sweetie?" Lena whispered into the girl's ear.

Not looking up, the girl nodded and flinched as though she were going to be hit.

Stef and Lena exchanged glances. "That's alright, honey. I know you're tummy probably isn't so hungry right now." Stef said with a small smile.

"But mom! We want ice cream!" Brandon interjected.

Stef looked up at him with knowing eyes. "Brandon."

That was all she had to say before the boy understood his mistake and mumbled a small "sorry" towards the little girl who now felt like she was ruining everything for the boys.

"You know, I think everyone tried their best to eat and that deserves ice cream!" Stef said, hoping to cheer up the girl, as well as the two boys who had been doing very well in the hopes of getting a treat.

Mariana looked up and smiled, though she was hesitant. She didn't know why they were being so nice to her.

"What do you think, hmm?" The blonde tilted her head so she was looking directly at the girl and gave her a bright smile.

Mariana, as her response, stuck her thumb in her mouth, laid her head on Stef's shoulder, and nodded. Stef smiled as she nodded in return before turning towards the boys.

"Well. I know the three of us are going to get ice cream. But I think we might be needing a few more people to come with." She said in a teasing manner.

"Mommy! Me and Jesus wanna go! Please? We eated all of our dinner!" He folded his hands together and pushed out his lip. Looking over at Jesus, who was simply watching, he nudged him with his elbow. The boy gasped and quickly folded his hands and stuck out his lip as well.

Stef looked from one boy to the other, trying not to outwardly laugh at how adorable they looked. "Hmmmmmm. Mama I dono. What do you think? Should we take these handsome boys with us to go get ice cream?" She stroked her chin as if she was thinking very hard about this decision.

"What do you think, Mariana? Should we take them with us?" She tried to look at the girl and get something out of her.

After a moment, the Latina picked up her head and gave a small nod before smiling and burying her head back into the crook of Lena's neck.

"Well I guess if Mariana says it's ok..." Stef began as she turned towards the boys and they let out a loud cheer and began to run around the kitchen.

"Go get your shoes and a jacket on, boys." Stef said laughing slightly at their reaction.

"If they're hyped up on sugar and don't go to sleep tonight, you're dealing with them." Lena said in a half-joking manner before kissing Mariana's head. "Come on. Let's go get ready too." She told the girl as she got up, kissed her wife, and made her way up the stairs, still holding the girl.

* * *

"No I want this one!"

"Wait! What about this one?!"

"I want all of them!"

The boys had been looking at the numerous flavors of ice cream for the better part of 10 minutes while waiting in line.

Finally, when it was their turn, they scrambled; making last minute changes to their orders.

"Can we get two scoops, mommy?" Brandon asked as his eyes remained wide and glued to the treats in front of him.

"No, buddy. Just one for each." She explained as she stood behind the boys and placed her hands on their backs in the attempt to move them towards ordering.

Mariana hadn't let go of Lena since they got out of the car. Luckily, there was only one other family in the store and it wasn't too overwhelming, but it was still a situation that frightened the little girl.

"What kind do you want?" Lena asked as she tried to get the girl to look up from the crook in her neck, which Stef had jokingly asked if there was something awesome hidden there that Mariana was constantly looking at.

With no response except her watchful eye on her brother, Lena softly patted her back and sighed. "Ok, well how about half chocolate and half vanilla and you can try both to see which you like better. Then, next time you will know which one to get!"

As she shoved her thumb into her mouth, she nodded, but kept her eyes on Jesus, who was with Brandon and Stef, deciding on which toppings to add.

As Lena stepped up to order, Mariana saw the boys and Stef making their way towards a table. She was content that she could still see her brother. However, that didn't last long as the Latino saw a small toy section on the other side of the ice cream shop and suddenly took off running.

"Jesus!" Stef called out to him as she got up and quickly walked towards the direction he had ran. At the loss of sight of her brother and her foster mother, Mariana could only think the worst. She needed to help her brother. Quickly, she wiggled out of Lena's arms. The mother wasn't expecting such a sudden movement and the girl easily escaped.

"Mariana, love where-" was all Lena could get out before the tiny girl ran towards her brother and the blonde. "Mariana!" She called again, but the brunette didn't turn around. Lena sighed as the woman behind the counter smiled slightly in an understanding manner. She did, after all, work at an ice cream shop; she had seen it all when it came to children. "Stef, Mariana is by you." She announced as she quickly pulled out her card to pay for the ice cream.

Mariana didn't entirely have a plan as to how she was going to help her brother, but she knew that he had taken many beatings for her over the years and that she needed to be the one to protect him now. As she rounded the corner, she saw Jesus standing on his tip-toes trying to reach a toy on the top shelf, and Stef squatting next to him, clearly trying to get him to look at her. The girl quietly made her way over towards her brother, though she was frightened.

"You can't just take off like that, love." Mariana heard Stef explain in a calm voice once Jesus had stopped and looked at her.

"I wanted dis toy for Bwandon." He explained quickly and put his head down in guilt.

Stef sighed. She knew that it was going to be a difficult first few months with these two, but the fact that Jesus was trying to get a toy to share with Brandon warmed her heart and she knew every moment would be worth it.

"That is so nice of you, buddy!" Stef replied with a genuine smile. "But next time you need to ask before you leave, especially when we are out somewhere," She explained gently.

Suddenly noticing the presence of his twin, Jesus addressed her. "Hermana!" He said quickly, which made Stef turn and look at the girl as well.

"Did you get some ice cream?" Stef asked in an overly excited manner.

Mariana nodded her head, but remained looking at her brother. She didn't think Stef was mad about Jesus running, but she could never be sure.

"Estoy bueno, hermana." Jesus assured his sister, as though he knew exactly what she was thinking.

Stef looked at both children and smiled. "How about we go finish our ice cream and then we can go home and watch a movie!" she suggested.

Jesus gave out a loud whoop before sprinting back towards the table. "Walk!" Stef reminded him, though he didn't hear her.

The Latina hadn't expected her brother to leave her so quickly and was stunned as he took off. Stef sensed her uncertainty as she stood up and stretched her legs slightly from crouching down next to Jesus.

"How about you, hmm? Does that sound like a good idea to you?" Stef asked with a smile. She held out her hand towards the child after she realized she was not going to be getting a verbal response from the girl.

Mariana looked up at the blonde with uncertainty. She didn't think she was dangerous, but she didn't think she could trust her yet. Much to her relief and Stef's disappointment, Lena walked up behind them and gently addressed the girl. "Come on, Jesus and Brandon are waiting for you. They said you could pick out the movie." She said in a tone that she hoped would get the girl excited.

Instead, she latched onto Lena's leg and looked down.

Both moms exchanged worried glances, but before they could discuss it, the sound of yelling followed by two pairs of little feet running pulled them towards the boys.

Stef sighed but made her way towards the two boys while Lena bent down and picked up the small girl. She knew she would have to talk to the Latina about not being carried at all times, but the ice cream shop was not the place to have that discussion.

* * *

"So what movie should we watch?" Lena asked from the back seat, as Mariana had refused to let Lena leave her in the back by herself, even though her twin was right beside her.

The Latina had her thumb in her mouth and remained looking down.

"Mommy! Can we watch Power Rangers?" Brandon asked excitedly when no one answered the question.

"Mariana is going to pick out the movie, bud." Stef replied as she glanced back through her rear-view mirror. "But, maybe you can show her and Jesus all of your movies when we get home." Stef suggested.

Brandon nodded his head. "Ok." He then turned around in his booster seat to look at the twins. "We got lots of movies!" He explained excitedly. "What movies do you like?"

The two looked at one another before Jesus spoke up. "We not 'loud to use Mommy's TV" He responded with sadness in his voice.

"Your mommy won't let you watch movies?" Brandon asked with deep interest. He had never heard of such a thing.

Jesus mirrored his sister's fixed gaze on the floor of the car and shook his head.

"Well, then we are just going to have to try out all of the movies and see which ones you like best!" Lena interjected, knowing the twins were becoming uncomfortable with Brandon's innocent questioning.

"Yeah! We can watch movies all the day long!" Brandon responded happily, thinking this was a great idea.

Stef chuckled at her son's enthusiasm. "Bedtime is still at 8." She reminded him with a raise of her eyebrow.

"Aww mommyy! Can't we stay up late tonight?!" He pleaded with her with puppy dog eyes.

Lena responded for her wife. "Buddy, Mariana and Jesus are probably really tired and need a good night sleep." She said as Jesus looked at her. "But we can watch movies tomorrow too." She assured the boy as his shoulders slumped. "Ok, buddy?"

Brandon nodded. "Ok."

Stef finally pulled into the driveway and turned the car off. As she got out and opened the back door for the Brandon, Lena unbuckled herself and went to Jesus to unbuckle him from his seat so he could get out with Brandon. Once the boys were out, Lena squatted down in front of the little girl and waited for her to look up at her.

"Ready to go inside?" Lena asked with a smile.

The little girl nodded and Lena reached over to unbuckle the straps. She got the girl out of the seat and before she could wrap her arms and legs around the woman, Lena set her down on her feet. She then proceeded to back out of the car and stood outside on the driveway, looking in at the girl who had yet to move. "Are you coming, sweetheart?" Lena asked. She knew the girl wanted to be carried, but she was determined to not let her hide. It was a small start, but it was a start.

Mariana bit her lip as she looked out at Lena who was waiting for her. They boys and Stef had gone inside and it was just the two of them. Slowly, she walked towards the car door. Lena smiled and held out her hand for the girl to use to help get out.

"OK! Let's go see what those boys are up to." Lena said with a smile as she kept the girl's hand in her own before closing the car door and leading the Latina up to the house. Mariana kept extremely close to Lena's leg, but she walked on her own and for that, Lena was happy. She knew it would take a while, but she was going to get the girl to continue to thrive in their care.


	20. He's In There!

**I loved the first two episodes of season 4! This is my take on the ending of episode 2. Warning mention of suicidal thoughts. Possibly a 2-par story. **

"What? What's wrong?" Stef said as she and Lena reached the top of the stairs. Mat had run into the kitchen only moments before and told them that Callie needed them right away.

The look on Callie's face told the moms that whatever it was, it wasn't good.

"He's in there! Nick is in there with Mariana!" Callie whispered as she pointed to her and her sister's room with a shaky finger.

Stef's face fell. She immediately began to push Callie and Lena into the closest room, which happened to be Jude's, and told them to keep quiet. Stef took a deep breath and stepped quietly into the bathroom. She peaked into her daughters' room through the reflection in the bathroom mirror and her heart stopped when her eyes set on her daughter.

She was laying on her back on the bed, Nick's one hand gripping her shirt and his other holding the gun, which was pointed at her head. She swallowed the lump that began to form in the back of her throat and tiptoed back out of the bathroom.

"Lena!" She whispered as she softly knocked on Jude's door.

Seconds later, the door opened a crack and Lena put her face to the opening.

"Call Mike. Nick has the gun and Mariana. Tell them I need SWAT now. And tell Mike I need a gun" She whispered. Although she knew that Mike was close by, and SWAT was ready for a call, she began to wonder if they would get there in time.

Lena nodded at the request and gave her wife a look of pure love and strength as she gently shut the door again.

Stef exhaled and turned to once again head into the bathroom to figure out how to best help her daughter. She closed her eyes at the sounds of her daughter's whimpers and Nick's heavy breathing.

"Please, Nick. I promise nothing is happening with us. If you just give me a minute to exp..." Stef could hear her daughter cry out when suddenly Nick yanked her hair back and held it tighter.

"Just shut. Up. You. Bitch." Nick snarled.

It took all of Stef's strength to not run into the room and punch this kid in the face.

_Come on, Mariana._ Stef thought to herself as she inched closer to the bedroom. _Keep talking to him. You've got this._

Mariana swallowed thickly as Nick released his tight grip on her hair for a moment. "Please" she had resorted to begging, seeing as nothing else seemed to be working.

"Why should I even give you any sort of chance? You cheated on me! After I asked you if anything was going on! You lied to me!"

"Nick, please. That's what I've been trying to tell you. Yes I loved Mat, but I don't anymore. I love you." The teen tried to reason with the boy.

"Stef." A soft whisper came from the other side of the bathroom. Mike stood holding his gun out to his ex wife. He knew she would want to be the one to get her daughter out safely. "SWAT is here." He added as she inched closer.

The blonde cop reached out and grabbed ahold of the gun, nodding her head as a thank you before turning back towards the bedroom door, this time with the gun pointed out in front of her.

"You little whore." Was the last thing Stef heard from the boy as she entered the room, gun first.

"Nick." She called out as she slowly followed her gun.

At the sound of Stef's voice, Nick jumped up, dragging Mariana by her ponytail until she was flush against his body, the gun still pointed at her head. "Don't come any closer!" Nick shouted, tears in his eyes. He knew he had been caught, and deep down he knew he didn't want to hurt Mariana, but everything was beginning to get to be too much and he was freaking out.

As Stef finally emerged fully into the room, she had to stifle a gasp as she saw her daughter with a gun to her head, tears pouring down her cheeks.

The cop slowly continued towards her daughter, trying to remain calm, for Mariana's sake. "Come on, Nick. It's over now. Put the gun down."

"I said don't come closer!" Nick yelled, pulling Mariana further back into him, the girl wincing at the movement.

Stef, realizing this was going to take some talking raised her hands up in the air as to show Nick that she was no longer pointing her gun at him. "Ok. How about we both put our guns down. Hmm? See I'm putting mine down. Can you put yours down so we can talk?" She asked carefully as she lowered her weapon.

Nick ran his fingers through his hair as he tried to think about what he should do.

"Please, Nick. You're hurting me." Mariana's small voice came suddenly. "Just put down your gun so they don't think you're going to hurt me." She pleaded as she glanced from Nick to her mother, trying desperately to loosen his grip on her so she could run to the safety of her mother.

"No! NO NO! It doesn't matter now! I brought a gun to school! I can't! This is all not how it was supposed to happen!" Nick began pacing, though still holding onto Mariana's hair. "I can't get out of this! I'll go to jail! I'M NOT GOING TO JAIL!" He yelled as he dragged Mariana around with him.

"Come on, Nick" Stef said gently. "Just first put the gun down so we can talk about everything. Look at Mariana. You're hurting her." Stef tried to get Nick to see he was hurting Mariana and therefore get him to drop his weapon. She didn't think he would actually hurt her and maybe him seeing how he is hurting her would make him understand that he needed to put down his gun.

Nick looked down at the Latina and shook his head. "NO! I'm not going to jail. I can't." He suddenly spun Mariana so he was in between her and Stef. He threw her towards the wall and stared at her, gun pointed at his own head.

"Nick!" Mariana screamed. "No! Please don't!"

"I'm not going to jail, Mariana! It's too late for me. I don't care!"

Stef acted quickly, nodding to the SWAT team that had been waiting for her signal, she quickly got behind Nick, grabbed ahold of his hand and gun and pulled so the gun was facing away from all of the people in the room. She quickly gained a grip on the weapon and pulled it away from the boy.

Realizing he was going to be handcuffed, Nick fell to the floor, sobbing, his head hanging in shame.

"Mariana?" Stef called out as the blonde waited for two members of SWAT to handcuff Nick and pull him up to walk him outside. "Mariana, love" She called again, this time looking up and seeing her daughter pulled into a tiny ball up against the wall, her head buried in her arms.

"We got him, Foster." One of the men said as they starting walking Nick towards the door, hands behind his back.

The blonde gave a quick nod in thanks before rushing over towards her youngest daughter. "Sweetheart. You're ok. It's all over, my love." Stef said gently as she slowly crouched to get at her daughter's level.

At this point, Mariana had been able to block out all of her surroundings as she made herself as small as possible and covered her eyes and ears.

"Mari, baby." Stef whispered as she gently pulled the girl's arms away from her knees.

Jumping at the contact, Mariana began flailing her arms, but Stef caught them and quickly brought them towards her own body, pulling her daughter in close in the process. "Hey, hey love it's ok. It's mom. You're safe now." Stef said as she sighed in relief when Mariana realized who was holding her and relaxed further into her embrace.

"Shhhh, you're ok." Stef whispered into her daughter's ear as the girl tightened her grip on her mother and her tears began to flow heavier.

The mother slowly sat down and pulled her daughter into her arms, rocking her slightly as she sobbed. Stef knew at that moment, Mariana just needed to be held, and that was just what she was going to do.

"I've got you, my love. You're ok." Stef cooed while continuing to rock the girl.

"Mariana!" Lena's voice suddenly burst through the bedroom door.

Mike had made sure that Nick was out of the house before running to find Lena and the other kids. Once she opened the door and it was confirmed that Nick was gone, Lena ran into her daughters' room. She needed to see for herself that her baby was ok.

As she entered the room, her heart broke at the sight of her teenage daughter crying in her mother's arms. Stef looked up and motioned with her head for Lena to join them.

"Look whose here, Mari. It's Mama." She tried to get the girl to pull her head up to look, but the girl didn't want to move.

Lena dropped to her knees next to her wife and daughter and slowly wrapped her arms around both of them. She could feel her daughter's sobs and she ran her fingers through the long dark locks in any attempt to soothe her.

"You're ok. You're ok." Lena whispered over and over.

Both moms looked up at one another and had a silent conversation over their daughter's head.

There was a lot that they needed to figure out and discuss, but at that moment, they were content with holding their baby girl.


End file.
